English Cricket Bat Willow (Salix alba Caerulea).

We work with all types of landowners and land managers across the country, including private estates, councils and farms.

Cricket bat willows thrive close to streams, rivers, ditches, brooks, dykes, river plains and floodplains where they can access groundwater. They will still grow if planted away from those areas but not as quickly and there may be more losses. A water table of 1 meter or less from the top soil and areas that periodically flood and have access to plenty of sunshine provide ample conditions for the trees to flourish.

Generally between 15-20 years, depending on site conditions and whether the trees have been maintained. There are examples of trees reaching maturity in 12 years. Trees ready for harvest usually have a circumference of around 58 inches (147.5cm). Leaving them to get larger means they are more susceptible to effects such as wind damage, which can make them worthless so its best to harvest them as soon as they are large enough.

English Willow offer our clients a complete service: from Consultation, Establishment and Maintenance, through to Harvest and Replanting. We will provide and plant each 15-16ft unrooted Set for £20+vat with a continental guard free of charge.

An Earth Auger can be used for larger sets and more stubborn soils, otherwise an iron bar is used. We dig approximately 2-3 feet deep and plant with a granulated fertiliser. Once planted it will need heeling in immediately and preferably again after 2-3 weeks, or after heavy winds. Set roots are very fragile so leaving a leaning set and only treading it in when we come back for maintenance risks the roots growing and then having to break off and regrow. If it is done properly there is no need to stake the tree (in isolated cases where the site is very exposed to strong prevailing winds may require the owner to stake the Sets) but individual guard protection against rabbit and deer is essential.

Planting is carried out during the winter months, generally from December- February, before the sap rises. It is important to ensure that planting occurs after the last frost to protect young unrooted Sets and when the ground is soft but not waterlogged.

Cricket bat willows are planted in rows of 10m spacing (producing a planting density of 100 trees/ha or 40 trees/acre) which is the perfect balance between fast growing trees and density, providing them with the space to grow. The crowns are enormous so they need the space to grow effectively and not compete. Air circulation is essential to reduce the risk of disease and make access for maintenance and harvesting easier. You can plant with 8m spacing but this may add as much as 5 years to the growing time and they are more likely to be susceptible to pathogens and diseases if they are too close and growing too slowly. We always ensure that plantations are situated at a minimum of 5 meters out from any other hanging branches (other mature woodland), if any closer then you may get a leaning tree which causes hazards as it matures.

Absolutely. Every year the apical tip dies and so it is essential that pruning takes place to ensure a straight grown pole is achieved. We are the only company to offer free tree maintenance services with no hidden deductions. We provide this at any stage of growth, from site clearing and establishment, through to harvesting as we believe this is essential to ensure your trees grow into high value timber and produce high quality bats for professional players all over the world.

Maintenance is carried out twice a year, in late spring (May-June) and early autumn (Sept-Oct) for the full life of the tree, although after about 7 years from planting, the bark tends to harden and the occurrence of shoots declines markedly.

Growing cricket bat willows is a high value investment but the tree value is very much dependant on the condition of the tree at maturity, this is why regular maintenance is essential. If you think you may have Cricket Bat Willow trees please Contact Us to arrange a site visit.

You should expect a set to be unrooted and approximately 16ft tall. This unrooted Set will be planted at a minimum depth of 2-3ft. Some Sets may exhibit a kinked main stem which can cause concerns, however, our experience proves that the mature tree will straighten and ultimately produce a quality cleft. Sets should be between 1-3 inches in diameter (dbh).

For the first 7 years of growth, whilst the set is vulnerable it is advised to keep sheep & especially cattle off the plantation. On occasion sheep can graze if they have plenty of food to forage for, but if the grass isn’t growing then sheep must be taken off the field otherwise they will eat the trees. They can also scratch and push the sets over. We provide continental tree guards, free of charge but for grazing livestock metal deer guards (priced at £15+vat) can be used or your own materials to fence off individual trees, but perhaps the cheapest and most sensible option would be to fence off the whole plantation (wood or electric fencing). This also allows for ease of access for maintenance and felling, then if each individual tree has been guarded. If you’d like your cattle to still graze the area an option could be to run rows of electric fencing to protect each row of trees whilst allowing cattle to graze in between these rows. The 10m spacing between trees does allow for this.

Yes - we manage felling, plantation, establishment and re-stocking programmes, covering the whole process from start to finish and generating hassle free, tax free income on otherwise unproductive land.

Planting cricket bat willow offers many environmental benefits including habitat for bird species, small mammals and insects. Shade for animals. Carbon sequestration in the form of cricket bats and flood mitigation, soil and riverbank stabilisation.

We are based in Oxfordshire but cover all of the UK.