68 TREES GROWING NEAR WATER. 



BRITTLE WILLOW. CRACK WILLOW. {Plate XXIV) 

 Salix frdgilis. 



Bark: grey; slightly rough. Branches: greenish, tinged with red; smooth; 

 very brittle at the base, the most so of any species with this characteristic. 

 Leaves : simple ; alternate, with smooth petioles with two wart-like extuber- 

 ances near the base of the leaf; lanceolate; taper-pointed at both ends; 

 unevenly and sharply serrate, the teeth somewhat incurved ; smooth and dark 

 green above, whitish below and only slightly downy, even when young. 

 Flowers : growing in catkins at the ends of the season's leafy shoots. Stami- 

 nate catkins : shorter than the long, loose pistillate ones. 



Among the willows, Salix fragilis has its distinct place, and 

 it is regarded as a valuable tree. From its withes much of 

 the basket work with which we are so familiar is made, and 

 the industry in Europe, where it is generally distributed, is a 

 large one. The timber that it yields is fine and of a rich 

 salmon colour. From the old plants its twigs break away and 

 grow into new ones with astonishing facility. It is probably in 

 this way that it has escaped so widely from cultivation. It 

 has also many varieties and hybridizes well with other species. 



An amusing story is told of a country school mistress who 

 prided herself on her knowledge of the family of willows. One 

 day she told a young lad to fetch her a twig with which she 

 might flog him. He sought one of a near-by willow and, 

 being wise in his generation, made slight circular incisions all 

 along the twig with his ever-ready pen-knife. When he 

 returned, he calmly held out his hand to the mistress. She 

 raised the twig ; but before the first blow was fairly adminis- 

 tered, it had flown in innumerable pieces all over the room. 

 " It is the brittle willow," said she with an air of wisdom to 

 the rest of the pupils. 



