Curly Willow Tree
The centerpiece of our tasting patio is a mature Salix Matsudana, commonly known as the Curly Willow – also known as the corkscrew, twisted, contorted, Peking, Hankow and even the tortured willow. While its list of pseudonyms may be impressive, salix matsudana boasts an even more remarkable history and list of uses.
Moderate in size when compared to many species of willow – of which there are hundreds – the curly willow stands out in beauty and can be found as an anchor specimen in gardens around the world. Its unique architecture and impressively vigorous rate of growth make it a favorite with landscape designers, and its gnarled and twisted branches are prized by florists who use them in bouquets and installations.
The benefits of the willow extend beyond its interlaced, meandering canopy. For thousands of years the salix species have been deeply connected to humans and their communities, providing natural medicine for healing and raw materials for tools, crafts and building.
Extracts of the willow tree – made in to teas, salves, poultices and more – have been used around the world as anti-inflammatory, pain relieving and fever reducing medicine. Willow is rich in salicylic acid, the key ingredient in aspirin, and prior to modern day extraction techniques the salix species played the role of the little white pill that is now a staple in most medicine cabinets. Not just a healer of humans, willows also contain natural growth hormones that can be put to use in stimulating the development of roots in other plants. Steeped or soaked in water, ‘willow water’ can be a natural rooting hormone and is often used in the practice of permaculture.
Coppicing, the art of continually cutting a tree down in size to encourage vigorous new growth with each new season, was an essential skill in the toolkit of the traditional builder. Willow grows exceptionally fast and straight (except in the case of the corkscrew willow!) and was planted in and around communities so that they could be coppiced each winter and produce building materials year after year. Young branches were used for basket making and other tasks that require both strength and flexibility, while some wood was allowed to mature for use in furniture and tool making. Even the fibers of the tree can be used for rope and paper.
Here at Heidrun, our stately curly willow is a welcome sight to both visitors and full time residents. On a warm summer day, guests can seek refuge in the shade under its canopy – the same can be said on a windy spring day, offering us respite from the wind. When coastal showers sweep across the farm, the willow offers a comforting shelter. In early spring the willow blooms and the tree fills our patio with a gentle buzz, as our honeybees join countless native pollinators in their search for nourishment. In the heat of the summer we may find swarms among the limbs, a knot of bees seeking a new home among the twisted elbows of the branches. Not the easiest to swarms to catch, but some of the most exciting! In the winter, as the leaves fall, the brilliant architecture of the tree is exposed and a whole new kind of beauty graces our patio.