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| Salix: The wonder species of cold desert | | | Dr. Parveen Kumar, Dr. D. Namgayal
The Ladakh region of the country falls in the cold arid zone with nude mountains devoid of any vegetation. Due to the intense cold conditions representing many environmental challenges, trees are a very rare sight in cold deserts, but Salix is among the few species that naturally grows in the places like Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir and Lahaul and Spiti in Himachal Pradesh in India. These willows belong to the Genus Salix, (family Salicaceae) which has hundreds of species of which only a few are native to the high altitude of Ladakh where temperatures can dip to minus 40 degrees centigrade. The species is often found along streams in association with Alder and Downy Birch (Betual pubescens) but not in waterlogged soils. The species is naturally distributed throughout Europe, northern Africa and the temperate regions of Asia.
There are about 20 species of local willows and 10 those of poplar growing at different attitudes of Ladakh. Out of them, some worth mentioning are: Populus Nigra, Populus Alba, Populus Ciliata, Salix Alba, Salix Excelsa, Salix Angustifolia, and Salix Fragilis. These willow species (Salix Fragilis and Salix. Alba) are important elements of the cold deserts and can thrive well in these areas as compared to any other species. Their ability to grow through shoot-cuttings plantations under extreme and xeric climatic conditions of cold deserts makes them ecologically suited and socially acceptable among the communities besides playing an important role in cold deserts in combating desertification. Salix Alba or the White willow was introduced as part of a colonial Policy in the earlier 19th Century in order to make Cricket Bats. However, S. fragilis is widely cultivated under the agro-forestry and plantation forestry systems. In the Lahaul valley, willow species are used as subsistence resources and for socio-religious purposes.
The white willow is a well-developed tree growing up to a height of 20-25 m with the principal boughs and branches ascending at a sharp angle to form a pointed or truncated crown. The bark is deeply fissured and greyish-brown. The leaves are lanceolate-acuminate and between 5-10 cm long and 1 cm wide. Their edges are minutely serrated and the lamina is silver-grey at first, becoming dull green with age. Catkins appear with the leaves in late April-May with the male catkins 5 cm long and uniformly pale yellow and the female catkins being shorter and narrower. Their edges are minutely serrated and the lamina at first silver grey, which makes Salix Alba easily identifiable at a distance. Flowering takes place in October-December before snowfall.
Uses: The tree is put to various purposes. In Tibet, the whole plough except the point, which is iron, is generally made of willow. In Afghanistan willow wood is generally used for building, as insects do not attack it. The small twigs are used for basket. The leaves can be harvested throughout the growing season are used in both, fresh or dried form. It is used for construction purposes. The stem and branches are used as thatching and for making handles for doors and windows. Salix branches are soaked in water overnight to make them flexible enough so that they can be woven to make baskets and fences. The leaves are highly valued in winter as food for sheep. Agricultural implements like winnows, ploughs and harrows are made out of them. The wooden piece, which is bored through the nostrils of bullocks that plough the land is also made of Salix. Local people use snow boot made out of Salix twigs. The traditional hand looms or 'khaddis' are made from Salix wood. The wood is also used in making the traditional cylindrical mixer in which salted tea is made. Wooden racks and cross stands, on which holy books are kept are all made of the Salix wood. The local communities of the Western Indian Himalayan region use this wood extensively for timber. One of the substances known as manna the bed-khisht, used as a laxative, is said to be a product on a species of willow of Khorasan and Turkestan. Twig bridges of willow are also mentioned in Spiti, Zanskar, and Ladakh. In Kashmir, willow twigs are employed as tooth-sticks. There also, and still more on the Chenab and in Ladakh, the trees are severely and systematically lopped, the young /shoots and bark of the larger removed by hand, ' being used as fodder. It is very much famous as the original source of salicylic acid (the precursor of aspirin), white willow and several closely related species have been used for thousands of years to relieve joint pain and manage fevers. The bark is anodyne, anti-inflammatory, anti-periodic, antiseptic, astringent, diaphoretic, diuretic, febrifuge, hypnotic, sedative and tonic. It has been used internally in the treatment of dyspepsia connected with debility of the digestive organs, rheumatism, arthritis, gout and inflammatory stages of autoimmune diseases, fever, neuralgia, colic and headache. Its tonic and astringent properties render it useful in convalescence from acute diseases, in treating worms, chronic dysentery and diarrhoea. An infusion of the leaves has a calming effect and is helpful in the treatment of nervous insomnia. When added to bath water, the infusion relieves widespread rheumatism.
The species is playing an important role in the livelihood of the peoples of the region. The cuttings about 10 to 12 feet long fetch them rupees thirty to forty per cutting. Given the contribution of the willows in the economy of the region, the commercial aspects of their cultivation need to be studied in depth and their plantation should be encouraged. However the small size of land holdings in the region acts as a major constraint for establishing a large number of such plantations. |
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