March - Crack Willow

Crack Willow (L.) Salix fragilis is found in the area, and there are some trees along the River Medway that appear perhaps to be this species. This one is just to the North side of Lock, by the side of the old footpath. Identified almost solely by the audible click when first year twigs are bent gently so that they snap off the year two branches, it does fit with most characteristics to the book descriptions.

This is a close-up view of the twig junction that will snap if gently twisted back. note the raised bumps possibly indicative of lenticels on the second year bark.:

The next day I went further west along the river, and found more crack willow trees, including this one.  The twigs here seemed yellower. The bud shape never seems particularly characteristic for any particular species.

Another possible feature, if anything the lenticels seem even more raised than in the other tree, again in effect bursting through the thin epidermal bark.

The smaller flat maroon spots might be fungal, perhaps minor infections arising from single spores?

This twig is a bit more olive, with redder buds, possibly a bit more weathered.

Some of these buds are just opening now:

and in close-up:

Here is another bud that has opened a bit further:

Here is the same bud in close-up, showing the two or three narrow silky inner scales more clearly. I was surprised to see the leaves drop out asymetrically from underneath the scale. I wonder how commonly this asymmetry occurs:

A tree I saw on Sherenden Lane by a small water treatment works was surprisingly yellow (and a bit droopy) but clearly "fragile". I wondered whether it could be var decipiens as described in Stace - "var decipiens  (Hoffm.) W.D.J. Koch is .. male in the BI with unbranched catkins and shiny pale yellowish-brown twigs, glabrous even when young." decipiens means trapping, catching or cheating so that isn't much help, but anyway most of the written descriptions tend to point away from my tree.

Mitchell refers to the tree as having somewhat pendulous leaves on long spreading branches with upswept shoots, and a dark green glossy upperside to the leaves.