OT: Osage orange/Hedge Apple's

CAVEDWELLER

CAVEDWELLER

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May 5, 2003
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Every year about this time my wife and mother-in-law dress up the front porch with fall decorations. Hay bales, indian corn, gourds, pumpkins, etc etc. Well my mother-in-law always brings my wife these big green Orange looking things she calls hedge apples. She also said they are called osage oranges. Do these come from an Osage Orange tree? Pardon my stupidity, but I know jack squat about what tree is what.
 
We called them hedge trees and hedge apples back in KS. Osage Orange is too sophisticated for us.
 
Most common name I've heard is Osage Orange. Fruit looks about like a lumpy grapefruit. There's been some discussion on the forum about it - for bows and fence posts and fancy handles - so a search might be in order.
 
Lumpy grapefruit, yup that's it. I never put the to together since we always called them hedge apples. I gotta go get me some of that wood!!!
 
That is a great link. I have seen several of the trees over the years but hadn't really gotten around to figuring out what they were!

Thank you
 
We have always called the "Horse Apples", and my father spoke of how he and his other siblings would always get into fights with them when he grew up.

As a matter of fact I told him last week that they make unbelievable knife handles and Bows. He had no idea.

(BTW, on another note, he has begun to save up old files, chisels, lawnmower blades and other carbon steels for when I start forging. He is looking forward to seeing what I can do. ):D
 
Old woodcrafter down in SE Ohio ("Boss") always emphasized that Osage Orange wood needed to be harvested in Winter to minimize shrikage cracks. He made beautiful things out of it: bows; walking staves; knife handles. But boy does it have serious thorns.

TAL
 
Nothing kills a chainsaw worse than Osage Orange, or Bois d' arc, as some people call them.

It doesn't matter when you harvest it -- if you make one into a fence post, it will be there longer than your barbed wire.

The hedge apples make great targets for young wingshooters too. :D
 
Originally posted by Burchtree
Nothing kills a chainsaw worse than Osage Orange, or Bois d' arc, as some people call them.
Click to expand...

Whoa, so now Osage Orange is also Bois d'Arc!! And here I thought they were different tress altogether. I really am learning something here.
 
They say what, like 15 years on a Black Locust fence post and 20 to 25 on a Osage Orange? Might be a good alternative to treated lumber if they grew straighter.
 
Originally posted by hollowdweller
They say what, like 15 years on a Black Locust fence post and 20 to 25 on a Osage Orange?
Click to expand...

I shared some of the guaranteed 85 to 100 year old fence posts I have with Dan, aka Pendentive.
That's what he made his cup and spoon out of for the Ren Faire.:D
These were small posts averageing about 3 1/2"-4" in diameter. I have another much larger chunk, average 8" in diameter, that's a guaranteed 70 years old, but it was used as a beam in a barn up in Southeast Kansas. It is still in excellent shape!!!!
How long they last may depend on the area and the climate found in different places and what they're used for.
Drainage would be important as well.
 
That's beautiful wood. I think I know where some grows around here, but it's in a city park, so that makes walking stick gathering a no-no unless I find some fallen branches. :)
I used to have to dodge those hedge apples when driving home from college!
 
Russ,
I have a few pieces you can have if you want them. Give me a holler tomorrow. Yvsa give me a knice bow stave a while back that I have just about got turned into a flatbow. I used to sit down and turn a nice longbow out in a day. But now it seems to take a bit longer.
God Bless.
Terry
 
Sure would like to try and sprout some of those seeds. I don't kow whether they would grow well in Texas or not but it woudl be worth a try.:) :)
 
I've got a couple of staves drying for a bow. Names I've heard for osage are mock orange, hedge apple, bois d arc and bodok.

I've also got a 2x12x96 board for handle material.
 
Does anybody have any suggestions/favorite links concerning making a bow? Sounds like some great fun. I guess I just added another project to the great heap. Maybe if I live to be about 200, I might get them all finished:)
 
Originally posted by T.Sisco
Russ,
I have a few pieces you can have if you want them. Give me a holler tomorrow. Yvsa give me a knice bow stave a while back that I have just about got turned into a flatbow. I used to sit down and turn a nice longbow out in a day. But now it seems to take a bit longer.
God Bless.
Terry
Click to expand...


We where talking about Bois D'Arc not to long ago and I had no idea that it was also Osage Orange. I really regret playing all that Nintendo, when I should have been outside. I'm gonna try to get some good walking stick lentghs tonight, if I can find any.
 
Bow Dark, Bois d'arc, it is all the same, none other than probably the best self bow wood God ever allowed to be gathered on His green earth. There is a ton of info on the internet about it. Probably hands down the best site is www.leatherwall.com. There are also a plethoria of books written on the subject too.

The secret to getting a good bow out of it is a lot of luck, tremendous amount of skill, and a good eye for tillering. Also you need to find one continuous ring for the back and follow it. Straight grained is the best. Although snaky pieces and knotty pieces make one of kind highly accurate and shootable bows too.

There is a fella in Ohio, by the name of Dean Torges and a fella in Oklahoma by the name J.D. Jones that are probably the preminent bow makers using osage. There is also John Strunk in Oregon I believe, and Wes Martin down in the Carolina's. Yvsa that piece you have from that barn is a treasure to be sure. J.D. Jones runs Genisis longbow and you can link to the fellas' mentioned at the Leatherwall. Man I love traditional archery. Jay Massey now deceased was a pioneer amongst bowyers too. He was from Okie too. My uncle was just back visiting my mom and he live in Perry. Used to spend alot of summers out in that great state. Keep'em sharp

PS to learn to make a bow from wood(just about any type of wood too) there is a series of 3 books called the Traditional Bowyers Bible vol.1,2,and 3. Lots and lots of info in them.
 
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