It hasn’t been a particularly rough winter. A little snow, a little rain. A few very cold days. But nothing very extreme. And yet, I find myself greeting every sign of spring as if I’d just lived through a winter on the northern plains.

I just planted this bush two years ago.

Today, I cut forsythia branches to force into bloom. It sounds so aggressive, ‘forcing’ little yellow blooms. Maybe “coaxing” would be a better word. Either way, if it brings a bit of spring a bit earlier, I’ll do it.

The buds are clearly swelling, even beginning to show tinges of green. After all these years of gardening, this is only the second year that I’ve tried to force forsythia. I just never had a bush before. Last year, I cut them a little early, apparently, because the buds began to fall before they bloomed.

So, this year, I waited until I was already seeing a bit of green in each little bud.

A few branches for Mom, a few for me. We’ll see if I’ve got the timing down now. I’ll post an update on these.

I also took some cuttings from my black pussy willow bush.

This bush is an offspring of one from another garden I had created and tended for many years.

While most pussy willow cuttings are made for the purpose of drying, keep in mind that willow roots more easily than most any other tree. So, if you want to propagate the bush for yourself or a friend, just put the cuttings in a vase with water. It won’t take long — 5 to 7 days, roughly, and you’ll see roots beginning to sprout.

The reason they root so easily is because willow wood — from any member of the salix family — contains a rooting hormone, one that can easily be brewed up into a natural rooting tea to be used for many other plant cuttings. Here’s how easy it is: Boil a quart or so of water in a saucepan, cut small-diameter willow branches into one-inch lengths, remove the boiling water from the heat and drop in the willow wood. Cover the saucepan and let it steep overnight. This solution will keep in the fridge for a while — but mark it very clearly because it looks just like iced tea. Use the willow ‘tea’ to encourage rooting for just about any plant cuttings.

These were cut for a tabletop bouquet. But cutting longer branches would be great for some of the very large ‘floor vases’ that have become so popular.

If you want a dried bunch of pussy willow, cut when the catkins are fully developed and put them in a vase or container with no water. If the catkins are not fully developed, give the cuttings water only for a day or two until the catkins are full and fuzzy. The catkins will shrink slightly as they dry, but the dried branches will look nice for months, if you want to keep them that long. I tell people the bouquets will last until they’re dusty enough to throw away.