Black Willow Traditional Cache

Black Willow is native, not cultivated like the Weeping Willows. It likes it wet, so be prepared if it's been raining.

Black Willow

Salix nigra (black willow) is a species of willow native to eastern North America, from new Brunswick and southern Ontario west to Minnesota, and south to northern Florida and Texas.

Description

It is a medium-sized deciduous tree, the largest North American species of willow, growing to 10–30 m (35–100 ft) tall, exceptionally up to 45 m (148 ft), with a trunk 50–80 centimeters (20–30 in) diameter. The bark is dark brown to blackish, becoming fissured in older trees, and frequently forking near the base. The shoots are slender and variable in color from green to brown, yellow or purplish; they are (like the related European Salix fragilis) brittle at the base, snapping evenly at the branch junction if bent sharply. The foliage buds are 2–4 millimetres (¹⁄₁₆–³⁄₁₆ in) long, with a single, pointed reddish-brown bud scale.

The leaves are alternate, long, thin, 5–15 centimeters (2–6 in) long and 0.5–2 centimeters (¹⁄₄–³⁄₄ in) broad, usually somewhat falcate, dark, shiny green on both sides or with a lighter green underside, with a finely serrated margin, a short petiole and a pair of small stipules. It is dioecious, with small, greenish yellow to yellow flowers borne on catkins 2.5–7.5 centimeters (1–3 in) long in early spring at the same time as the new leaves appear. The fruit is a 5 millimeters (³⁄₁₆ in) capsule which splits open when mature to release the numerous minute, down-covered seeds. The leaves turn a lemon yellow in the fall. It is typically found along streams and in swamps.

Another name occasionally used for black willow is "swamp willow", not to be confused withSalix myrtilloides  (swamp willow).

Largest example

According to the National Register of Big Trees, the largest black willow tree in the US is in Hennepin, Minnesota. Its height is 63 feet (19 m), circumference is 32 feet (9.8 m) and spread is 73 feet (22 m).

The Marlboro Tree, located in Marlboro Township, New Jersey is certified by the State of New Jersey as the largest known example of this tree in the state. It is about 152 years old and measures 76 feet (23 m) in height and 19.7 feet (6.0 m) in circumference. Five grown people must hold hands to fully encircle the tree.

Uses

Black willow roots are very bitter, and have been used as a substitute for quinine in the past. Ethnobotanical uses of black willow by various Native American tribes include basketry, and treatment of fever, headache, and coughs. The bark of the tree contains salicylic acid, a chemical compound similar to aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid).

The cache is a tied in, camoed, "small" pill bottle. If there's one arrow on the lid, it points to the tab, where you push it to open. If there are two arrows, push hard and turn. Please BYOP and put everything back as you found it. Make sure the lid is closed tightly, all around, and camo as best you can.