WILLOJVS AND POPLARS 



or bole, for the lopping off of great branches 

 always tends to a thickening of the main stem. 

 The abundant leafage of both willow and 

 poplar soon covers the scars, and there is less 

 cause to mourn than in the case of maples or 

 other "hard-wooded" trees. 



If my readers will only add a willow section 

 to their mental observation outfit, there will be 

 much more to see and appreciate. Look for 

 and enjoy in the winter the variation in twig 

 color and bark hue ; notice how smoothly lies 

 the covering on one stem, all rugged and 

 marked on another. In the earliest spring 

 examine the swelling buds, of widely differing 

 color and character, from which shortly will 

 spring forth the catkins or aments of bloom, 

 followed by the leaves of varied colors in the 

 varied species, and with shapes as varied. 

 Vivid green, soft gray, greenish yellow; dull 

 surface and shining surface above, pale green 

 to almost pure white beneath ; from the long 

 and stringy leaf of the weeping willow to the 

 comparatively broad and thick leaf of the 

 pussy-willow — there is variety and interest in 

 the foliage well worth the attention of the 



115 



