Willow pattern

“ All of the willows have long, slender leaves. Each leaf is a narrow, thin, delicately veined blade that grows by itself, and alternately, along a slender stem, making a sort of feathered branch. The pussy willow leaves are a bright green. The black willow leaf is broader, saw-notched, and it tapers toward both stem and tiplike a canoe. It is bright green above and silvery underneath. The leaf of the white willow is a gray green lined with silver, and it droops from yellow stems. The crack willow, whose twigs snap so easily, has a green leaf lined with a waxy coating. ”

“ We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof.' 'The poet valued highly the small slender twigs, as associated with so much that was interesting, and he untwisted the basket and planted one of the branches in the ground. It had some tiny buds upon it, and he hoped he might be able to rear it, as none of this species of willow was known in England. Happily, the willow is very quick to take root and grow. The little branch soon became a tree, and drooped gracefully over the river in the same manner that its race had done over the waters of Babylon. ”

“ In high flood this great acreage of sand, shingle-beds, and willow-grown islands is almost topped by the water, but in normal seasons the bushes bend and rustle in the free winds, showing their silver leaves to the sunshine in an ever-moving plain of bewildering beauty. These willows never attain to the dignity of trees; they have no rigid trunks; they remain humble bushes, with rounded tops and soft outline, swaying on slender stems that answer to the least pressure of the wind ”

“ The winter came and the snow fell on the little spot and lay for its appointed time, exactly as on the ground.
"It is just as though I had quite a piece of the world in my head," said the willow-tree.
"It's not healthy to have too much in one's head," said the oak.
"Once I had a large and glorious crown," said the willow-tree, sadly. "Now I am satisfied and delighted with less. We must take life as it comes." ”

“ As the pine is the symbol of manly vigour and strength, so the willow is the synonym of womanly beauty and grace. Willow wood, because of its lightness, is used largely in making the clumsy wooden shoes which are worn exclusively in wet weather; and chests are made of it when lightness is desirable. The willow sprays are used in making baskets of all kinds, so that this tree is, in many ways, quite indispensable. ”

“ Spring came and summer, autumn and winter. Rain came and snow came, sunshine and storm, good days and bad. The birds flew out of the country and flew back again, the flowers blossomed and withered, the trees burst into leaf and cast their leaves again, when the time came.
The willow-cutting grew and grew quickly, after the manner of the family. He was now quite a tree, with a thick trunk and a top with many branches.
But there was no denying it: he was not a poplar. And his fellow-members of the avenue were greatly displeased with him:
"Isn't it possible for you to grow taller in stature?" ”

“ I mean the most common kind to be found in the northern States—the kind that stands beside the roadside watering-trough. The impression is common that willows will thrive only in wet places. It is true that a willow is very comfortable in places where many other trees will suffer from wet feet; yet it will give good results elsewhere. It is reasonable to suppose that poor soil goes with a poor school [444] building, and a refined tree would probably find life hard in such a place. I should certainly plant a willow in such cases. It will thrive where a goat can, and where a sheep cannot. ”

“ A pergola of Willows, leading to the ornamental water which so many gardens boast nowadays, would be a charming thing, first to leap out in the spring, and last, when its silvery leaves have turned, to drop in the autumn. Or an arbour of Willows, beside a pond or brook at an old-fashioned country place, would be a constant delight; for the Willow leaves, like the Aspens, are always fluttering, and give one the sense of a breeze even when there is none. ”

“ There is probably no tree that contributes so largely to the conveniences of English life as the Willow. Putting aside its uses in the manufacture of gunpowder and cricket bats, we may safely say that the most scantily-furnished house can boast of some article of Willow manufacture in the shape of baskets. ”

“ The weeping willow, in addition to the pensive, drooping appearance of its branches, weeps little drops of water, which stand like fallen tears upon the leaves. It will grow in any but a dry soil, but most delights, and best thrives, in the immediate neighbourhood of water. ”

“ In their natural condition Willows are graceful and picturesque, but a large number of the examples met with in our rambles have been so altered for commercial reasons as to be more grotesque than beautiful. It is not the timber-man who is responsible this time, for a pollard Willow, though it produces a shock-head of long slender shoots, suitable for basket-rods, lets in moisture at the top of the bole, and the wood is more or less decayed and worthless. ”

“ Who has not admired the soft gray silky buds of the "pussy" willow, swelling with the spring's impulse, and ripening quickly into a "catkin" loaded with golden pollen? Nowadays the shoots of this willow are "forced" into bud by the florists, and sold in the cities in great quantities; but really to see it one must find the low tree or bush by a stream in the woods, or along the roadside, with a chance to note its fullness of blossom. It is finest just when the hepaticas are at their bluest on the warm hillsides ”

“ Fig. 115. Leaf and Bract of Linden
The willow is dear to boys, because on the green twigs in spring the bark can be separated from the wood and a whistle or simple flute manufactured.
[106]
The wood of the willow is not very valuable, being used chiefly by pulp makers, but it grows where no other trees can exist, being found nearly all over the world, and creeping nearer to the north pole than any other broad-leaved tree except the birch. It has over one hundred and fifty varieties, which vary from small shrubs up to trees a hundred feet high. ”

“ But, of course, that comes of marrying a kitchen-maid. It's the truest thing that ever was said, that birds of a feather fly together."
"Birds of a feather fly together ... fly together ... fly together ... together ... together," whispered the poplars all along the avenue.
The oak on the little hillock in the fields twisted his crooked branches with laughter. The wild rose, whose hips were already beginning to turn red, nodded to the willow-tree:
"Every one has his position in life," she said. "We have ours and the smart ones theirs. ”

“ The willow, which was originally a cylindrical willow basket, whence its name, but is now a box made of wood, with revolving iron spikes, is the first apparatus to which cotton wool is exposed, after it has been opened up, picked, and sorted by hand or a rake, in what is called a bing. The willow exercises a winnowing action, loosens the large flocks, and shakes out much of the dirt contained in them. ”

“ The golden willows are coming into leaf. The weeping willow is not seen here, our winters are too severe for it. Some persons think, that by watching a young tree carefully, and giving it several years to take root, without being discouraged by its slow growth, it would in time become acclimated; the experiment is now going on, but its success is very doubtful. At present, there is no weeping willow within some distance of us, excepting a couple of young nurslings in gardens of the village. ”

“ The bark is used in tanning. The little branches have long been associated with baskets and woven work. American trees are seldom cut up into lumber, but are valued for shade and appearance, and are often planted along the banks of streams to prevent erosion.
Willows grow very rapidly and have a characteristic and attractive appearance. They usually prefer low moist places. There are so many hybrids and peculiar species as to render classification in all cases difficult. [50] Black willow is the native species, oftenest attaining to tree size in North America. ”

“ In short, the blue willow is as tolerant of conditions of soil and climate as any other native willow, and could probably be grown at a profit in any county of the United Kingdom where shelter from violent winds can be had ”

“ Here is a poplar twig, with well-developed, shapely buds. I pull off the outer coverings and lay bare a mass of woolly fibres, fine and soft, within which the tender blossoms lie in germ. And next is a willow stem. Already, though winter is no more than a fortnight old, the “pussy” has begun to push off its dark coverlid, as if it were in haste to be up and feel the sun. Yes, spring will soon be here, and the willow proposes not to be caught napping. ”

“ We cut the twigs and bring them home and watch the wonderful color changes that mark the full development of the flowers. Turning them in the light, one sees under the sheen of silky hairs the varied and evanescent hues that glow in a Hungarian opal. In midsummer a pussy willow tree is lost among the shrubby growth in any woods. It is only because it leads the procession of the spring flowers that every one knows and loves it. ”

“ Second, willow leaves are nearly always long and slim to match the supple twigs. They are always simple, and short-stemmed. The wood is light and soft, so the trees break easily in storms of wind and ice. An old willow tree is likely to be crippled, but its scars and wounds are covered in summer by the arching branches and the abundant foliage.
The first trees to blossom in spring are the shrubby pussy willows, a distinct kind whose catkins are so eager to push out of their scales that their grey, silky noses are often seen in November. ”

“ The Old Willow-tree 1
There are many kinds of willows and they are so unlike that you would hardly believe them to be relations.
There are some so small and wretched that they creep along the ground. They live on the heath, or high up in the mountains, or in the cold arctic regions. In the winter, they are quite hidden under the snow; in the summer, they just poke up their noses above the tops of the heather.
There are people who shrink from notice because they are so badly off. It is simply stupid to be ashamed of being poor; and the little dwarf-willows are not a bit ashamed. ”

“ If only we don't catch it!"
"Oh dear no, those are buds!" said the willow-tree. "I can't understand it, but I can feel it. They are real live buds. I am turning green again, I am getting a new crown."
Then came the busiest time of the year, when every one had enough to do minding his own affairs and had no time to think about the poor willow-tree.
The stately poplars and the humble elder got new leaves. The grass shot up green beside the ditch, the corn grew in the fields, the wild rose-bush put forth her dainty leaves, so that the flowers should look their best when they arrived in July. ”

“ Willows.—Willows are imported normally from Germany, Holland, Belgium and France. Because of their scarcity and demand for them, willow growing is fast becoming a thriving industry in the United States. ”

“ Beneath the Willow tree.
"O Willow gray, I may not stay
Till Spring renew thy leaf,
But I will hide myself away,
And nurse a hopeless grief.
It shall not dim life's joy for him,
My tears he shall not see ”

“ Along roadsides in this country a large willow is much planted, whose leaves are pale beneath, so that they look very cheerful and cool in midsummer. The most striking thing about these willows is that their twigs are yellow as ducks’ feet, and particularly bright in early spring. The older trees grow very stout, and great branches leave the trunk close to the ground. ”

“ Sweet is their place of rest. A weeping willow droops over their grave, and the flowers of summer shed their perfume and scatter their leaves around. Night winds sigh a mournful requiem, and gentle zephyrs fan the leaves of the weeping willow, and murmur among its branches.. Two white marble slabs stand at the head of the little heaped up mound, and point to the traveller's eye the place where rest the remains of the angel cousins. ”

“ A swaying mirror for the sun the lake swings and tips,
Spilling broken drowsy shadows and silver leaves.
In the willow pollen the bees hum;
In the apple bloom the bees hum;
Fluttering up like a begging hand
The ash tree twirls its mystic seven-fold leaf,
The thrush its song.
O beautiful world, what are you?
And who made you?
Are you no more than a fragrant dream,
A jewelled crust of loam for sun to shine upon,
A swaying mirror,
Willow pollen,
A twirling song,
A crumbling leaf?
{14}
YOU I
You are the sunshine,
I am the sod:
Flame to my leaf-mould,
And goldenrod. ”

“ In the early spring days we gather pussy willows. They are really the flower buds. Put them in water and watch the catkins, as the flowers are called, develop. The Weeping Willow is a native of Asia; it grew near ancient Babylon. You will remember that the Bible tells us that the people of Israel hung their harps upon the willow tree by the waters of Babylon. They are trees of rapid [159] growth, as are also the aspens and cottonwoods. The last-named trees derive their name from the peculiarity of the seed, which is surrounded by cotton-like fiber. ”