Pollard-Willows (in Dutch:) Knotwilg
The Botanical name is Salix Alba
It has soft wood, with an average age of 50 years.
It grows best near the water. In Holland it's a common tree; there are many willows.
When the willow achieves a hight of 200-250 cm, the rest will be cut off, so the max. height stays at this size.
The young twigs are used for many purposes, and the leaves are not poisonous.
Other plants near the Pollard-Willow are for instance hawthorn, cuckoo gillyflower, rosebay, moss, cow parsley, grass and reed.
The leaves fall of for Winter. Wind and some insects spread the seeds around.
But there are also some places in Holland and Belgium were people use the twigs to let new trees grow. They stick the twigs into the wet ground.
The wood is used for: willow matting, hoops, baskets, basket-work, wooden shoes, artwork
The tree has no smell. The Pollard-Willow is a national tree.
Several Dutch painters used the Willow-Tree to show a typical Dutch landscape.