36 
BULLETIN 316, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
of tannin, while other species contain 6 to 11 per cent of tannin. 
H. G. Bennett in "The Manufacture of Leather" asserts that crack 
willow and S. arenaria contain 7 to 11 per cent of tannin and are 
commonly used. Alexander Watt in " Leather Manufacture" states 
that the bark of white willow (S. alba) and S. cinerea is used for 
tannin in France. 
Tests made by the leather and paper laboratory of the Bureau of 
Chemistry of willow bark collected in 1914 at Arlington, Va., by the 
Forest Service, produced amounts of tannin as follows: 
Table 16. — Tannin in willovj bark. 
Species. 
Per cent 
total 
dissolved 
solids. 
Per cent 
soluble 
solids. 
Per cent 
nontannins 
Per cent 
tannins. 
Number of 
samples. 
S. nigra (trunk) 
S. alba (trunk) 
S. fragilis (trunk)... 
S. fragilis (branches) 
16.16 
18.13 
23.32 
19.62 
15.10 
17.03 
22.27 
18.04 
8.38 
9.40 
14.12 
9.64 
6.71 
7.63 
40 
Hemlock, chestnut oak, Spanish oak, black oak, hickory, and 
chestnut wood range above willow in tannin content, but in some 
cases the high tannin content is offset by the difficulty of securing 
or handling the bark. 
The bark left in the woods in the making of excelsior and the peel- 
ings from basket willows, of which a large amount, is often collected 
in one place, could be utilized at a low cost. If manufacturers of 
tannin extract could be interested in willow bark and assured of a 
sufficient supply, a profitable industry might be established. 
OTHER USES. 
Willows, because they produce flowers from which a high grade of 
honey can be obtained, have long been recognized as a useful bee 
plant, especially in early spring. Many beekeepers have set out 
willows especially for this purpose. Great care should be exercised 
in such planting to make sure that the cuttings are from staminate 
trees, as the pistillate flowers are of little value as a bee food. 
In New Jersey, Delaware, and eastern Maryland willow is used for 
berry props and poles in truck gardening. For this purpose it is 
only fairly durable, but it is cheap and easy to secure. 
The freedom of willow wood from checking and the ease with 
which it is worked make willow desirable as a carving wood and for 
picture frames, wooden shoes, and woodenware, such as bowls, scoops, 
ladles, and trays. 
