I don't know about birch branches, but these sticks reminded me of a procedure we used to "plant" weeping willow trees. In late spring, take a cutting from a healthy tree, slice the butt end of the stick at an angle and shove it into the ground. Keep it well watered for the next 2 weeks and if its shows signs of new growth, reduce the watering schedule, but do not let the soil dry out until the new tree is established. It is easy to start new weeping willows with this method. It is best to plant the cutting as soon as possible. If it is allowed to dry out, its probably dead wood. Growing a new plant from a cutting will produce a clone of its donor whereas its seeds may not. The seeds can be hybrids if there are other closely related trees in the vicinity.

Love that tongue! The dog in the lower left corner is the spitting image of our Lady(RIP).

In Canada we call it "Remembrance Day". The ones that we remember on this occasion are mainly the ones who lost their lives on the field of battle, and their service was completed at that time. We require that women and men be in top condition to join the military services. During their military service, many are grievously injured, in body, mind and/or emotion or spirit. For many, those injuries reduce their capacity to carry on and enjoy their lives well for years, even throughout the rest of their lives. When those who have served come home so broken, even to be unable to provide for themselves, and their families, their nation owes them to take care of them. We have not fulfilled those obligations well, as many of our veterans have not been able to provide for themselves and are among the homeless, wandering our streets. A substantial number, losing hope, take their own lives. We need to publicize this issue and build support among our citizenry for helping them, then our Department of Veterans' Affairs and our governments to care for these people who provided such loyal service at such great personal cost. ole joyful

I was US Navy for four years during that Viet Nam thingy. U.S.M.C.= United States Mommy's Crybabies