ON GROWTH AND CULTIVATION OF WILLOWS IN SCOTLAND. 95 



for absorbing the same lias already been tried with success upon 

 several sewage farms ; — Northampton sewage farm may he 

 named as a good example. 



The next group of willows used in basket making is S. 

 triandra. It might be supposed that the name triandra was a 

 sufficient guide to identification, but as the inflorescence of 

 willows is too variable to be depended upon, a more .simple and 

 certain means of identification is necessary. There are a great 

 number of varieties of this willow, more than twenty of which 

 are under cultivation, but all may be easily recognised by the 

 circumstance, that from three years old and upwards, they all 

 annually shed their bark, and as this is not the case with any 

 other willow, no one can fail to identify it. 



The S. triandra yields the best results when planted in a rich 

 loamy clay. It is a native of Northern Europe and very hardy 

 in constitution. The wood is harder than the wood of the osier, 

 and it is slower in taking root ; but when it has obtained a good 

 hold in suitable land, it will last longer without replanting, and 

 under favourable conditions it is a very profitable willow to grow. 

 The six best varieties to cultivate are known under the following 

 trade names : — Brown Norfolk, Green Norfolk, Italian, Black 

 German, Black Mule, and French. 



The third group of basket willows, S. purpurea, is of more 

 slender habit, and are more precarious to grow than those pre- 

 viously named ; indeed, it may almost be said that none but pro- 

 fessional willow-growers can deal with them profitably. They 

 grow well in sandy loam, and will do moderately well in a 

 gravelly soil. There are more than twenty varieties of this group, 

 but only two that grow well in Scotland, S. lyiirimrca and 8. 

 Kirhsii ; the latter is known by nurserymen under the name of 

 Whipcord. The demand for this willow is somewhat limited, and. 

 it cannot therefore he recommended for general cultivation. 



Having noticed the sorts of basket willow, and the most suitable 

 soils in which to plant them, such essential matters as are appli- 

 cable to all remain to be noticed. One of the first, and most 

 important is, that no willow intended either for poles, timber, or 

 for liasket-work, can be profitably grown in sour swamp, or in 

 water-logged land ; and the careful observance of this must be 

 regarded as the first condition in successful willow cultivation. 

 No reasonable amount of floodino- nor of artificial irrigation will 

 injure willows, provided the water can get away, and not remain 

 to become stamant. 



Another matter of importance is the careful selection of cut- 

 tings. Wlien forming a new plantation not only is it advisable to 

 have the best kinds, but it is of equal importance to take care 

 that there is no mixing of different varieties. Not only each 

 species, but each variety, must be kept distinct ; any mixture of 



