Answer:
With sharp edged wit and pointed poise. It can settle disputes without making a noise.
What tree that definitely grows does not have a shadow and does not grow fruit?
I can be short and sometimes hot. When displayed, I rarely impress.
You eat something you neither plant nor plow. It is the son of water, but if water touches it, it dies.
What is given but kept by the giver?
I am the fountain from which no one can drink. For many I am considered a necessary link. Like gold to all I am sought for, but my continued death brings wealth for all to want more.