122 FARM FORESTRY 



sold with the bark on must be smooth, tough, flexible, branch- 

 less and cylindrical, and the color of the bark must remain 

 a light brown. Usually the rods are peeled before being sold. 

 These must have the same general characteristics and must 

 remain white when peeled. In addition rods must have small 

 pith and straight grain to bring the highest prices. Peeling 

 is done either in the spring when the sap begins to flow and 

 the bark slips easily, or the rods are steamed to loosen the 

 bark. The rods for steam peeling are cut in the fall as soon 

 as the leaves have fallen. Where sap peeling is used the rods 

 are not cut until March. 



After the rods are cut they are drafted or sorted into 4 

 or 5 height and quality classes. To do this they are placed 

 upright in a barrel and all those of a certain length are placed 

 together. The smallest rods usually bring the highest prices. 

 The care taken in sorting the rods will often determine the 

 price received. After being sorted the rods are tied in bundles 

 by grades and stood in shallow pits of water about 2, inches 

 deep. After standing for 2 to 3 weeks the ends of the rods 

 become covered with little roots and the rods with tender 

 green foliage. In this condition they are ready for peeling. 

 In peeling, the rods are first drawn through an instrument 

 called a brake, which bruises and loosens the bark. Strippers 

 then pull off the loosened bark. The rods are then bleached 

 in the sun and dried in the open air. They are then bundled 

 tightly in bundles about a foot in diameter and stored in a dry, 

 dark place. 



A fair holt will average 4 tons of rods to the acre after 

 the second year for 12 years. The first year rods are of little 

 value. The second year the holt will yield about half a crop. 

 The price varies with the kind, size and quality of willows 

 from 4 to 6 cents a pound. The cost of growing a crop of 

 willows will be about $50 an acre. An acre of willow will 

 also yield about a ton of bark which should be utilized. It 

 contains sufficient tannin to be put to commercial use. Abroad 



