April, new buds and fresh yellow-green leaves in the tree canopies and my thoughts turn to live willow stakes- a special planting maneuver. Any species of this genus Salix will work for this activity and the results, if timed right are well worth the effort.
Down on the Little Spokane River, below Hastings Road on Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife lands I led a small cadre of youth on a mission, to cut live willow branches and plant them in the wet, muck, and oxbows of the riparian zone. Our efforts were to expand food forage for animals – deer principally, and strengthen the riverbank. Four separate planting days were made, and now it’s time to let nature run her course…
NICOTERRA 