In Praise of the Willow - 25/03/2009Cricket bats are specialist pieces of equipment and require certain materials and skills to produce. In order to produce a perfect bat, a specific kind of wood is required ' this requirement is met by Salix Alba ‘Caerulea', also known as the cricket bat willow. The White Willow (Salix Alba) gets its name from the surface of its leaves, which are covered with fine white hairs. It is a deciduous tree native to Europe as well as central and western Asia, which can reach up to 30 meters in height. The cricket bat willow (otherwise known as the English willow) is thought by some to be a hybrid between the white willow and the crack willow (Salix fragilis). Salix Alba ‘Caerulea' has slightly larger leaves than the white willow, at 10 ' 11cm long and 1.5 ' 2cm wide, which are also more blue green in colour. Willows have been used for numerous purposes throughout history. Willow bark has been said to have pain relieving properties and has been mentioned as a remedy to ease aches, pains fever and even chills. Hippocrates refers to its medicinal value as early as approximately 400BC, and it is mentioned for these properties in early texts from Egypt, Assyria and Sumer, as well as by Native American Indians. The bark of the white willow does in fact contain salicin, which can be extracted to a crystalline form. Salicin can be used to produce salicylic acid, which was the precursor to aspirin. Willow is also of use in the field of horticulture ' the bark contains auxins(plant growth hormones) which can be extracted to promote the rooting of new cuttings. New efforts in conservation and the environment have seen willows grown for biomass and biofuel. In the UK and the US large scale projects have been set up, to make use of the willow's fast growth and carbon
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