Clause
A winter tree is only a winter tree due to a clause in its tree contract.
The clause states that it cannot be a tree in the summer, because that is the summer tree's territory. Same goes for autumn and spring trees. Go ahead and look at the winter tree's contract, if you want (they're nailed to every tree). There's the clause that says it can only be a tree in the winter.
じょう
None
None
This clause was written into all trees' contracts by Joe (じょう), the large farmhand.
Joe noticed that the trees were getting too crowded, so he wrote up these clauses and added them to the trees' contracts. Now, the forests are less crowded, thanks to the little clause. Makes sense that a farmhand like Joe would do this, too. The fewer trees, the more farmland. It's good for folks like Joe.