54 OSIERS AND WILLOWS 



ragged appearance when worked up. Such " double- 

 skinned " rods are greatly depreciated in value and 

 useless for good work; moreover, an exhaustion or 

 bleeding of the head results. The correct period for 

 commencing to cut from the head for white peeling 

 cannot be determined by the calendar. It has been 

 known to vary from March 10 to May 10. The proper 

 time is when the leaf begins to show or when the 

 catkins appear, for the sap has then begun to flow. 

 On many varieties the catkins appear before the leaf. 



Couching 



A limited number of the spring-cut bundles are 

 placed in heaps in definite order on the ground. 

 Usually a layer of bundles is placed with the butt ends 

 all one way, and a similar layer is placed on the top 

 with the butts at about the centre of the bundle 

 forming the bottom layer. This is repeated until the 

 heaps are about six bundles deep. The object is to 

 keep the tops from heating, and to permit the flow of 

 the sap. It will be found a good plan to throw a 

 liberal quantity of water over the whole to aid the 

 sweating and prevent heating ; then to cover the heap 

 lightly with old peelings, which keep the willows warm 

 and exclude wind and sun. By the time the material 

 cut and peeled from the head is finished the contents 

 of these stacks should be quite ready for peeling 

 (see illustration, Fig. 4). 



Pieing 



If they have plenty of spare ground, some growers 

 instead of couching prefer to put one row of bundles 



