174 NATURE STUDY 



the willow, it is only necessary to plant a branch in order 

 to have a tree. 



The terminal buds contain the leaves. These do not 

 come out until after the flowers. The axillary buds may 

 contain either leaves or flowers. The leaf buds are much 

 more sticky than the flower buds. 



The male flower clusters, familiarly called caterpillars, 

 are made up of flowers consisting of numerous large 

 stamens. AVhere are the pistils ? How does the flower 

 dust get to the pistils ? Has this anything to do Avitli 

 the fact that the flowers come before the leaves ? 



The leaves are very neatly and compactly arranged in 

 the bud, each margin being rolled inwards. 



Willow : 



The willow belongs to the same family as the poplars, 

 and, like them, the flowers, familiarly called pussy wil- 

 lows, come in most kinds before the leaves. Like the 

 poplars, too, the male, or staminate flowers, are more 

 frequently found. They should be put in water, and 

 attention called to the yellow stamens and abundant 

 pollen. The poplars are fertilized by the wind, but the 

 willows depend upon insects. 



Methods : 



The methods indicated for the horse-chestnut should 

 be pursued with these branches. Do not study too many 

 of them, nor any of them too minutely. 



Remember that the object of these lessons is to open 

 the eyes of the children to the joys of spring, when, 

 later, the buds begin to develop out of doors. 



