202 McLEAN COUNTY, ILLINOIS. 



Adams county is one of the best in the State and equal to 

 any in the great Mississippi valley. The southern part is espe- 

 cially adapted to wheat, though fruit is grown largely and 

 successfully. 



JESSE W. FELL, 



NORMAL, MCLEAN COUNTY. 



Willoiv Hedges or Salix Alba. 



First, what kind of willow is best ? White willow, known 

 by various names, as gray willow, powder willow, Huntington 

 willow, French willow, etc. It was imported into this country 

 from France, by Irenee Dupont, the grandfather of Commodore 

 Dupont, for the manufacture of the finer grades of powder, in 

 the year 1800, and has been extensively raised for that purpose, 

 in the vicinity of Wilmington, in the State of Delaware; from 

 which neighborhood I got my first supply. It is extensively 

 raised on the Continent and in England. An English work of 

 authority — Chamber's Encyclopedia — says of it. Volume 10, 

 page 206: "It is of large sizo, and remarkably rapid growth. 

 The wood is used for many purposes, being remarkably dura- 

 ble, especially in damp situations. ****** Jt ^^g 

 anciently used for shields. Cork-cutters employ it for whetting 

 sharp-edged implements. It is used for paddles for steamboats, 

 because it wears better in water than any other wood. * * * 

 It is by far the largest species of willow known in Britain. It 

 attains a hight of eighty feet," etc. Have myself seen trees 

 higher, and four feet in diameter. It makes excellent lumber 

 for siding, inside work, etc., and splits equal to any timber 

 grown, and yet holds a spike or nail remarkably well. Have 

 seen fences made of the split rails that have lain in the fence 

 more than forty years. 



But, it is asked, if it grows so large, when crowded into 

 a hedge will it not, more oi" less, die out? Perhaps so, if 

 planted too thick. By planting not less than two feet apart, 

 and interlacing the limbs, it will last a long time as a hedge. 



