The planting, management and harvesting of Withies was once a significant industry across the whole of Britain and especially in the Severn Vale. This was before the advent of other materials such as cardboard and plastics, a ubiquitous and critically important source of material for all imaginable forms of willow basket-work. After harvesting, Withies were used to make a range of containers for movement and storage of goods of all sorts and a wide variety of other articles used in town and country life. In Gloucestershire it was inexorably linked to the brick-making industry and provided employment of many craftspeople in its own right. The Withy beds themselves provided a habitat for many animals, birds and invertebrates but the industry declined and died out in a very few decades after WW2.

Guest speaker Andrew Bluett is the Museum's Chair of Trustees, a trustee of the Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, Membership Secretary & Trustee of the Gloucestershire Naturalists’ Society.

Talk lasts around 45 minutes to one hour, followed by tea and coffee.

Tickets £5. Booking recommended, book online or call 01453 763394