I would like to thank the original poster to the gardenweb.com forum for providing the step by step instructions that are the best on the web and used almost word for word below. My commentary to the steps are in italics.
I have a salix hakuro nishiki which is trained as a standard. Of course it wants to be a shrub, its natural state, so every spring I need to trim the base. This picture is spring growth on the base. The website I referenced suggests early growth - so this is perfect. Just think of all those years it went straight into curbside recycling!
(No, the picture isn't tilted, it is the Willow's growth pattern. We have it in the northern part of the garden and she is just a sun goddess. If anyone is interested I can post a picture of the full tree. We have worked with it to shape it over an arbor so it almost looks intentional. Note the rocks shoved up under the southern edge did no good. She is just going to be the sun goddess she is intended to be!)
2. Strip off and discard all the leaves. All you want are the twigs. Cut the twigs into 1" lengths.
3. Heat the mixture almost (but not quite) to the boil, and brew it like tea, letting it soak until thoroughly cool, and for several hours more, when the liquid develops a greenish-yellowish-brown color, rather like weak tea, You filter off the solids, keeping the liquid. It will keep in the fridge for several weeks, or may be used immediately.
4. When ready to root your cuttings, make a fresh cut at the base of the cutting, and place it in the willow water, like flowers in a vase. Leave it there several hours, so it has time to take up a significant amount of the willow water. At the end of the soak time,
