The shad bush is strongly associated with the rich upland woods of New England, and in the early spring its white flowers are among the first to appear among the budding trees and shrubs, when the streams are full and the shad begin to rise. In winter there are no marked characteristics by which it may be known, apart from its general resemblance to other genera in the family, and its delicate twigs, small pointed buds with overlapping scales, and inconspicuous leaf-scars. The wood is close-grained, heavy, and exceedingly hard, and is used for the handles of tools and other small implements. The generic name, _Amelanchier_, is the Savoy name for the medlar. The shad bush is found from Newfoundland to Northern Florida and westward. CHAPTER XIV THE WILLOWS AND POPLARS [Illustration: WHITE WILLOWS _Salix alba_ Page 178 ] Chapter XIV THE WILLOWS AND POPLARS Family Salicaceæ Among the willows there are so many hybrids and varieties that their classification is difficult even in summer when an analysis of the flowers is possible. Most of the species in the Eastern States are shrubs, and I have chosen the only large tree, the white willow, as a representative species for study in winter. The genus _Populus_ also belongs to this family, of which four species grow commonly in New England. [Sidenote: White Willow _Salix alba_] _A large tree, 50 to 80 feet high, with thick, rough bark and lithe branches. The twigs are smooth and often yellow in color, and the small alternate leaf-scars have three bundle-scars. The buds are pointed, covered with a single scale and placed close against the stems. The lateral buds are numerous and are usually larger than the terminal buds._ The white willow is really a native of Europe, but for generations in New England it has associated itself with country landscapes, and there is scarcely a marshy meadow or a stream through a pasture with a water course unmarked by a row of these trees. It seems wonderful that the buds of willows should survive our cold Northern winters as they do, for they are covered with a single scale of delicate texture, and the little undeveloped leaves seem perilously near the cold. The soft woolly catkins of some species,—“the pussy willows,”—which come before the leaves, carry their own protection from cold weather, and even in January, when a few warm days bring them out prematurely, they look comfortable; but the little leaves with their single coverings never come out before the right time, and they never appear to have suffered. The wood is weak and soft, and little use is made of it. The value of the twigs in basket making has been recognized since early Roman times, Cato having ranked the _salictum_, or willow field, next in value to the vineyard and the garden. The generic name comes from the Celtic words _sal_, near, _lis_, water, in allusion to its aquatic nature. It grows on all kinds of soil, and is widely naturalized in the United States.