What kind of tree is this?

[Torvy]

Interesting. We had to go to a local farmer's market a couple of weeks ago. I chatted with a woodworker selling some pieces made from this stuff. Last week, we drove to Lubbock and back. There's an area about an hour from here called Bois D'arc. I'm guessing that tree is common there, too. Now this week I come across this post. I had heard of Osage Orange and Hedge Apple, but not Bodark (though that's how it's pronounced here). I took a French course in college...hard for me to see it written and say it that way.

 

[MossRoad]

This is the tree we see very often in rows along farm fields around here, although not as often anymore. It was planted as a wind break for soil conservation. You can tell which way the prevailing wind is in that area by the direction the trees are permanently bent.

 

[ning]

For you hedgerow folks out there...

While difficult, you can pleach osage orange and make an almost impenetrable living fence.

For you hedgerow-for-the-generations folks out there...

While difficult and a lengthy process, you can pleach osage orange and make an almost impenetrable living fence. which will be almost impenetrable but not until you're long gone.

FTFY (edits in bold)

Still I love the idea

 

[NoTrespassing]

For you juvenile delinquents out there....

Hedge apples make great ammo.

For you neat freaks out there...

It's said that if you put a couple hedge apples in each corner and spaced along the walls of the inside of your basement sill, you'll never have bugs and spiders. (my guess is that if you're the type of person to do this, you're also the type of person that dusts and cleans along your basement sill on a regular basis, so therefore, you'll never have bugs and spiders)

For you hedgerow folks out there...

While difficult, you can pleach osage orange and make an almost impenetrable living fence.

That's the first time I've heard or read the word "pleach". Thanks for the vocabulary lesson. I might leave work early now.

 

[Runner]

After cutting and disposing of hundreds of these things, I'm finally down to 5 in the pasture that are trimmed up to look like decent trees. Too big to cut down completely, but the ones I have left don't produce hedge apples for whatever reason. They can make pretty shade trees if you keep up with the pruning.

They are SO hard to kill. Any stump left will have new sprouts coming out of it and 5' high in a few months, even if the stump is treated with Roundup. The stumps really all need to be ground out, but unfortunately, I can't get to some of them with my grinder.

Pro Tips: Hedge chips make good mulch, takes forever to decompose. Use cheapo HF welding gloves to handle those thorny branches while you are chucking them into the chipper or burn pile.

 

[ponytug]

After cutting and disposing of hundreds of these things, I'm finally down to 5 in the pasture that are trimmed up to look like decent trees. Too big to cut down completely, but the ones I have left don't produce hedge apples for whatever reason. They can make pretty shade trees if you keep up with the pruning.

They are SO hard to kill. Any stump left will have new sprouts coming out of it and 5' high in a few months, even if the stump is treated with Roundup. The stumps really all need to be ground out, but unfortunately, I can't get to some of them with my grinder.

Pro Tips: Hedge chips make good mulch, takes forever to decompose. Use cheapo HF welding gloves to handle those thorny branches while you are chucking them into the chipper or burn pile.

Osage orange trees come in male and female trees, so you are down to just males.

All the best, Peter

 

[MossRoad]

For you hedgerow-for-the-generations folks out there...

While difficult and a lengthy process, you can pleach osage orange and make an almost impenetrable living fence. which will be almost impenetrable but not until you're long gone.

FTFY (edits in bold)

Still I love the idea

Yeah, it's a long end game.

With that said, I planted several thousand trees back in 1989 and they're all over 50' tall and I'm still here. (knock on wood).

 

[MossRoad]

That's the first time I've heard or read the word "pleach". Thanks for the vocabulary lesson. I might leave work early now.

 

[Dftodd]

Could it be an Osage Orange/Hedge Apple tree?

Thats what I was thinking as well.

 

[Dftodd]

Pretty amazing tree. Did you know that it is reputed to make a great firewood as well as a green fence post?
Maclura pomifera - Wikipedia

All the best, Peter

I have a friend that will collect all the Osage orange he can get his hands on for firewood.

 

[Tinhack]

I have a friend that will collect all the Osage orange he can get his hands on for firewood.

I've also read that it can damage a fire box because it burns so hot.

 

[Torvy]

Osage orange trees come in male and female trees, so you are down to just males.

All the best, Peter

Shame! You really don't know that. You would need to communicate with each tree to determine how it identifies.

 

[Dftodd]

I've also read that it can damage a fire box because it burns so hot.

He had it down to a science using that wood. Never any issue.

 

[ponytug]

I've also read that it can damage a fire box because it burns so hot.

All about knowing your stove and how to load it, I think.

Of course, it helps to know that you are tossing in Osage orange in the first place.

I sent some whole dried Scotch bonnet peppers to a friend to use as seeds for the coming Spring planting. A few months later, I got a note telling me that dinners had turned into Russian roulette as he had tossed the Scotch bonnets in with the family store of red peppers for food. Mom would grab peppers randomly... I was never quite sure who got what he deserved: me for wasting great seed peppers, or my buddy for not using them as seeds.

Every stove I have lived with seemed to have a personality in terms of loading, banking, and fuels that kept it going well. Could just be me...

All the best, Peter

 

[RSKY]

I had washed my shoes after the Sunday afternoon cutting up that tree. Spent an hour yesterday morning pulling thorns out of the soles. My favorite pair of Sketcher Slip Ins are no longer waterproof thru the sole. I knew I felt something in my shoes and thought it was sawdust. Was the thorns trying to poke thru the insole.

RSKY

 

[Tinhack]

I had washed my shoes after the Sunday afternoon cutting up that tree. Spent an hour yesterday morning pulling thorns out of the soles. My favorite pair of Sketcher Slip Ins are no longer waterproof thru the sole. I knew I felt something in my shoes and thought it was sawdust. Was the thorns trying to poke thru the insole.

RSKY

That's every day life down here with Mesquite Trees.

 

[Dftodd]

All about knowing your stove and how to load it, I think.

Of course, it helps to know that you are tossing in Osage orange in the first place.

I sent some whole dried Scotch bonnet peppers to a friend to use as seeds for the coming Spring planting. A few months later, I got a note telling me that dinners had turned into Russian roulette as he had tossed the Scotch bonnets in with the family store of red peppers for food. Mom would grab peppers randomly... I was never quite sure who got what he deserved: me for wasting great seed peppers, or my buddy for not using them as seeds.

Every stove I have lived with seemed to have a personality in terms of loading, banking, and fuels that kept it going well. Could just be me...

All the best, Peter

My grandfather built his own wood stove.

This thing was Satan's abyss on steroids

It took 24" chunks, and the fire box was 24" tall, by 36" wide.

It was extreme overkill for their 900 sqft 2 bed, 1 bath home.

Darn thing was heavy!!! it took 4 burly guys to move the flipping thing.

It took a while to warm up.... but once it did I've seen them with the doors and windows wide open and it be -50 outside, with me standing in the doorway cooling off and steam rolling off my body as a kid

My uncle got that stove, had to patch one spot in it. And then had it placed in his basement. He heats his 3,000 sqft home with it, and gets similar results.

 

[NoTrespassing]

I had washed my shoes after the Sunday afternoon cutting up that tree. Spent an hour yesterday morning pulling thorns out of the soles. My favorite pair of Sketcher Slip Ins are no longer waterproof thru the sole. I knew I felt something in my shoes and thought it was sawdust. Was the thorns trying to poke thru the insole.

RSKY

My goodness man, Sketchers Slip Ins for sawing up a thorn covered Osage Orange?!? What were you thinking? Put on some thick soled high top work boots!

 

[ponytug]

My goodness man, Sketchers Slip Ins for sawing up a thorn covered Osage Orange?!? What were you thinking? Put on some thick soled high top work boots!

I had similar thoughts, as much for the steel toed chain sawing side of it...

 

[Dftodd]

My goodness man, Sketchers Slip Ins for sawing up a thorn covered Osage Orange?!? What were you thinking? Put on some thick soled high top work boots!

I had similar thoughts, as much for the steel toed chain sawing side of it...

These were my thoughts as well. Ive dealt with some thorn apples on my grandparents property in vermont.

It was hot out that day. But I ended up going back inside after having one arm throughly cut to shred.

I came back out wearing my winter carhart pants and carhart coat plus thick leather winter gloves.

I was already wearing my steel towed work boots.

I sweated my booty off, but at least it cut down on punctures from the thorns.