does Osage Orange = Hedge Apple?

Raven

Raven

Branched out member
Location
Northwoods
Somebody told me this, I've never really spotted an Osage Orange but I've got plenty of Hedge Apples around my place.
 
Osage orange,hard as a rock when dry and tough as granite.Good fire wood.One of the best woods for fence posts,lasts for decades.I cut thousands of them in the 60s'
 
urbanohio, thanks for checking that out got involved with other things this week and only got around to checking out the species today.
Very good firewood and makes great fence posts, i have to agree. Planted in a row, make a good habitat for game birds as well.
 
It has been reputed to be a spider deterant.If it works for that,who knows.A little known use is for the decking on machinery trailers for moving heavy tracked equipment.Besides being nearly rot proof,it's nearly cut proof.
 
We hav one Osage Orange on the campus, it is a shame though it is a tucked away area. The fruit are huge and yeah they are really tuogh(mowers shoot them out when they go in there) the milk is really sticky. I tell some of the g=new guys working with me that is from the monkey tree for the monkey balls on the ground.
 
There is one at a private school in my area. so once a year we go there and knock the fruit out of it. They are worried about a law suit so once the fruit comes out they rope off the area for a while and when they start to fall i go there and help them along. its pretty funny when you tie in at the top and start shaking the tree. they start falling like rain.
 
Here in Kansas, they are everywhere. The cut wood is a bright yellow, prized by those who make bows, (bow and arrow bows). If in the fall you want to keep crickets out of your garage, the hedge apples will keep them away. In fact some one was selling them on ebay and making a killing at it! But if you are asked to prune the tree you better put on a suit of armor becouse the thorns will rip you to threads! It is about the only wood you can burn when it is still green, and when it burns it is like a fireworks display in that it throws sparks everywhere. No wood will burn hotter then osage orange, it is prefered over any other wood.

mark
 
I think the stuff was a transplant from the plains states to this neck of the woods.Here,it was planted in fence rows and became a living fence.Those rows were often 5 or 6 feet thick and would stop the most aggressive holstien bull with thoughts of conquest on his mind,so to speak.
It would also stop an International TD-14 dozer,how well I know.
 
Sticky! Your arm hair will feel like someone rubbed molasses in it after a few hours cutting though osage orange. Heavy too! I think that working with osage orange and mulberry go hand in hand.
 
[ QUOTE ]
Sticky! I think that working with osage orange and mulberry go hand in hand.

[/ QUOTE ] They ought to,they are of the species.
 
I had a guy tell me that the only way the balls kept out bugs (crikets, spiders, roaches, etc) was if you hit the bug w/ the ball. IE: OLD WIVES TALE.

Babberney, I had a guy call them horse apples too once, however, I always thought of a horse apple as horse poo.

Nowdays, the nurserys are selling a thornless, fruitless variety: Whiteshield
 
Osage Orange = Hedge Apple = one nasty tree to remove.

Nasty tree to remove or trim. Thick like a mulberry and no straight limbs. Really, really strong branches, down to the tiny ones. Guess they have to be to hold those heavy fruit. You can't break off the smallest twig. Dead limbs really tough too.

Took down a really big one once around some utility lines and other obstacles. Wasn't very fun. Lots of blood.

The ground guys had it worse though, they got cut up more than I did I think.

That was like 6 years ago, we still talk about it.

Very heavy wood, like someone else also said.
 
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