Willower

Beating with willow twigs, the willower cleaned the raw wool, removing dust and dirt.

By the end of the 18th century, a water driven willowing machine, called a willow or willyer was used to help remove burrs. The wool was passed over iron spikes on a roller. This was not as good as the hand treatment as it was too harsh on the fibres.

More recently, vegetable matter was removed by carbonising, the wool being treated with sulphuric acid.