190 OUR FORESTS AND WOODLANDS 



toughest, and fittest to bind while the twigs are 

 flexible and tender/ The force of the word 

 'Greek* here seems obscure, though if it were crack 

 it would exactly correspond with our own term 

 now. These two, together with the Russell or 

 Bedford Willow (S. Russelliana), said to have origi- 

 nated from a cross between the two species, are 

 the only tree-willows really deserving of cultiva- 

 tion, while the osiers or basket-willows may more 

 conveniently be referred to when dealing with 

 coppice woods. Our indigenous Saugh or Sallow 

 (S. caprcea), whose 'palms' render it a beautiful 

 object in the early spring, is common through low- 

 lying moist tracts in woodlands and along the 

 margin of brooks, where its broad, oval leaves, 

 generally twisted at their points, easily distinguish 

 it from the other willows. Here it grows into a 

 small tree, though along hillside streams it is more 

 frequently a mere shrub. And in any case, it is 

 not of much consequence to the forester. Where 

 it occurs among coppice under standards, and in 

 Britain it is frequently to be found there in 

 moist patches, it should be removed in favour 

 of some more remunerative kind of tree. 



Then, as for the other branch of the family, 



