"Osage Orange" trees

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Patt Mar 29, 2001

I'd sure like to get a Osage Orange tree. Saw one along the road in Harvard, IL. area several years ago. Can anyone tell me of a source to buy one? Thanks

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Brook Richmond, KY(Zone 6b) Mar 29, 2001

Patt,

Check catalogs under "Bois d'arc," which is it's official name. You might also find it under "hedge apple," another one of it's names.

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sunflower Olive Branch, MS(Zone 7b) Mar 29, 2001

Musser Forest carries it in their catalog. They're kind of a nuisance tree, really,IMHO, because the fruit just sits there and rots and stinks. Oldtimers used to plan them in a row to attach wire to for fences because the wood is so hard and rot resistant. But, the grain is so twisted, you really couldn't plant them to harvest it for anything else.

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Debby Milo, IA(Zone 5a) Mar 30, 2001

They also have long nasty thorns on the branches. Farmers grew them to make fencepost. Then they escaped and are growing wild in pastures and along fencelines. The farmers today kill these trees by cutting them down before they get to big and then they put a very harsh weed killer on them, in hopes they don't grow back. I do like to see the hedgeapples on them in the fall. The hedgeapples are supposed to expell mice and bugs and spiders from your home.

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Brook Richmond, KY(Zone 6b) Mar 30, 2001

Actually, Sunflower, they're very much in demand among boyars (people who make bows). The staves are very strong and straight grained. And the wood is beautiful.

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Mar 30, 2001

Yes, the Native Americans used to fight battles over the Bois d'Arc trees...they made the best bows.

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Patty Mar 30, 2001

[ Removed per member request. - Admin]

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