Black Willow

(picture provided by wikimedia commons under creative commons copyright)

I never knew much about this tree, it's a beauty though. It grows about 30-40 feet high, 10 to 12 inches in diameter of the trunk and bears a pretty flower that drapes down from it's branches like the Chinese Privet I told you about last night. These are very good shade trees for any yard whether you have an ugly landscape or a pretty one.
In spring, these flowers kind of remind you of pussy willow branches because they are right upon the limb of the tree without the leaves. Other common names for the Black Willow are the Swamp Willow and the Crack Willow.
Since many deciduous bears fruit, the Black Willow produces this weird 1/8 inch fruit that's reddish brown and feathers out seeds everywhere. The seedlings kind of remind you of those of the pine tree which looks like a wing of a dragonfly with a seed upon the wing. They fall down to the ground like a toy such as a whirligig or "bunny ears"