Today we're celebrating the Salix caprea, or pussy willow. These early-Spring catkins are flower clusters (with no petals). Only the male plants have them and the fluffy hairs are a way to insulate the flowers from cold temperatures. The female trees also produce catkins, but these look more like green hairy caterpillars than fluffy cat's paws.
If you find pussy willow at a supermarket or florist shop it's likely to have come from China and is dried at peak fluffiness. The pussy willow in this week's posy comes from Lincolnshire and Surrey and is fully alive! Watch carefully, and you will see them cast off their brown cases and turn fluffy. Yellow stamens show as the flower matures and leaves unfurl after this. You can plant these willow stems outdoors if you'd like to, to make a brand new plant.
Pussy willow is a popular choice for the Chinese New Year symbolising prosperity and happiness. I'm sure we're all hoping for a bit of that this year, so fingers crossed everyone!
If you'd like to order a posy for next week, please click here.