Holiday

[on the bay]

This is one of the legends.

"There are many fables and stories related to the ****** willow. A Native American legend tells of a rabbit that climbed to the top of a willow tree one particularly snowy winter. Tired after his climb, he nestled into the treetop and slept the winter away. In the spring thaw, he woke and as he jumped down, bits of his fuzzy tail clung to the tree. From that day on willow buds feature a tiny bit of fur in honor of one of springs busiest creatures, the rabbit."

There is another Polish one about how little kittens clung to the branch of a tree to escape from the water and left some of their kitty fur-that is how they got the name "****** Willows."

[Oznell]

Your display sounds so pretty, @queendiva .

I knew there were plenty of p u s s y willow fans here.  Enjoying your stories.

Those are fun legends, thanks for sharing them, @on the bay .

@ThinkingOutLoud ,  keep your eye out for them.  Willows tend to like wetness--  so marshy areas are a good bet.  A good thing to do, when you're driving along, is to notice if there are ditches by the side of the road that often have water in them--  prime spot for p u s s y willows to grow!

And, you can always order them online if they can't be found near you.

Love that some of you have related about propagating them, and then planting in ground!

If they are just wanted solely for decorative purposes in the house, the method is a little different.  You just cut them, put them "dry" in a vase, and the fuzzy little catkins will stay as is. 

If you put them in water inside, then the catkins will ultimately be replaced by a flower, and you lose the "fuzzies".   But like people say, if you want to root them and then plant outside, I would think that you would put immediately in water upon cutting them, and wait for little roots to appear (in a few weeks or a bit longer?).

My 'dry' ones with the catkins I pull out and display for several years in a row, before the catkins get too fragile and start to fall off.... 

@RetRN ,  I'm crazy about the earthy look of cattails too.  I can't make them last quite long as p u s s y willows, but they're great while they last.     

[DSD2]

Yes, they are lovely.

We had them in my childhood home's yard and seeing them always brings back so many memories. Mostly happy, a few not...

[cimeranrose]

Oh, I love p u s s y willows! Brings back wonderful childhood memories growing up in beautiful western NY. Our home was in the country and we had plenty of p u s s y willows around us. Unfortunately, we live too far south now so I don't see them anymore They  are so unique. Thanks for the reminder about p u s s y willows @Oznell .

[aoldgirl]

Go to your local florist and ask them to order you a bunch.   After you get them, keep them in water until they root.  Then plant them.    Ta Da you now have a ****** willow bush!

[pieman]

When I saw this post, ooh, had a terrible flash back:

I agree they are cute, pretty, soft and all else, but....

When I was a kid, I was at my Nana's, out in her garden and I spotted these soft, furry buds,,,

They were so soft I began to rub my nose, it was like a tranquilizer, so much so, next thing I know its up my nose!

The more I panicked trying to get it out, the further up it went..

Oh my gosh, now I'm running in the house, crying because I don't know what Nan will say and why is this soft little thing diving deeper into my nose....

Well, Nan came running, gasped when she saw what trouble I had gotten into,

She tried her best to undo the damage but..............

Off we went to the doctors house(back then, that's where they had their offices)

So he hoisted me up on the table, took his long plier like instrument and got that little bugger out!

Then he handed me the ever so famous lollipop...

So you see to this day, I still can feel the pain, when I see those cute little buds and trust me, that was many many years ago,,,,,,,,

I rather the artificial ones that are Super Glued on to a branch, so I know they aren't going anywhere....

Have a nice Easter!

[Oznell]

Oh, no, @pieman --  no wonder you are somewhat traumatized by the thought of them!   That must have been horrible, especially at that age.  Children can be so innocent about things like that.  I vaguely remember hearing warnings about things like, "don't put pebbles (or lima beans, or whatever) up your nose".  Something fuzzy like a catkin would be awful b/c you might feel like you were almost being smothered, in a way! 

[pieman]

I'm fine,,now..lol

Just wonder how I could have been so stupid, but I guess when you think about some of the things we've done as children, now,,, we just shake our head in wonderment..

[Oznell]

A Martha Stewart arrangement, whoa.  While seeing them in abundance indoors is interesting, I do prefer a more wispy, almost architectural look, with individual branches standing out, myself.

[Flatbush]

I used to root them and grow them in my East Coast garden. Now I have to buy them @ Trader Joe's and just enjoy them in a vase.

I was teaching kindegarten then, and found a children's song  about them, so I taught it to the children.

Yes, lots of memories from so long ago.