Seasoned Orange Osage

Till the moisture content is about 18% inside

Pretty dry fresh cut.. A year is good stuff, just like mulberry and black locust.

That stuff is the highest rated btu wood in north America, never had a chance to burn it. But I would say if u get it now and stack it so it gets plenty of air circulation and sun exposure it will be good to go next fall.

I've almost got to the point to where I feel it coals up too much but it does do some darn good heatin!

CodyWayne718 said:

I've almost got to the point to where I feel it coals up too much but it does do some darn good heatin!

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Sounds a little like Black Locust.

best longbow wood in north america too.

i've heard that some stove manufacturers recommend not burning it, but i don't know that for a fact.
anyone from osage country ever hear this?

OT

pen said:

I just miss this stuff by a 150 miles or so. Someday I'm going to find someone w/ it and make a 300 or 400 mile trip for a truck load just to try it out and say I've done so.

Jump on that stuff if the price is right. Mind if I ask why they want for it? (really, I'm not ready to drive 4-6 hours for wood one way right now; someday I will tho)

pen

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Next time you are in IN, stop by and I'll give you some.

onetracker said:

i've heard that some stove manufacturers recommend not burning it, but i don't know that for a fact.
anyone from osage country ever hear this?

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I've heard that it burns like coal so I think you could over-fire your stove if you're not careful.
I approached a guy that had four of them blow down in a storm, but never got any from him. Must have worked a deal with the guys who cleaned it up, or a friend wanted it. I originally thought the trees were on his neighbor's property, so I talked to that guy, an older gent, first. He said "You can crack your stove with that wood." A little of the Hedge ended up being on that guy's property, and he said I could have it if his kids don't get it pretty soon. It's not a lot, maybe 1/3 cord, but at least I'd have a little to try.

We are going to be taking out about 250-300 yards of a hedge row (osage orange) this winter. We have somebody who has agreed to purchase the land in 2 years, but we want to get the hedge posts and firewood cut out before they take possession. We should get a great deal of firewood out of that when it is all said and done.

ksburner said:

We are going to be taking out about 250-300 yards of a hedge row (osage orange) this winter. We have somebody who has agreed to purchase the land in 2 years, but we want to get the hedge posts and firewood cut out before they take possession. We should get a great deal of firewood out of that when it is all said and done.

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Some body going to be busy sharpening chains! ;-)

Jay...you are right about that one! I actually have a worse time with chains when cutting hickory, not sure why but the green hedge is a bit easier to cut, but it still does a number on the chains.

ksburner said:

Jay...you are right about that one! I actually have a worse time with chains when cutting hickory, not sure why but the green hedge is a bit easier to cut, but it still does a number on the chains.

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Standing dead hedge throws sparks off the chain, and not just every once in a while. Green hedge sap is very sticky...so it will stick to your saw and form a coat of neon yellow sawdust after a while. Still worth it though, IMO.

I got quite a bit of osage and it is by far one of the best burning woods. Be careful when you reload stove it has got alot of sparks when you open the door. lol I dont know what the stove manufactors say but I know on a cold night I can load the stove and it burns all night I have never had a problem with it, I do sometimes mix it with hackberry or another wood that burns faster (walnut, hackberry, maple, etc.) Just to conserve the osage. I will cut all the osage I can get and yes IT IS TOUGH ON CHAINS lol

i burned about 1/2 cord of this stuff 2 years ago. while it was good stuff it didnt seem any better than seasoned oak. couldnt tell any difference actually besides the showers of sparks when i opened the door.

Yep, great stuff, with some serious heat output. You should be fine with 1 year of seasoning it.

I'll gladly do an oven-dry MC test on a cord of the stuff for free if you need any help figuring when it's ready to burn.

For many years I burned nothing but hedge. My brother has farm with a couple of hedge rows. But it is a long way from my home and so I don't go there anymore for the hedge. It is hard on chains and it is difficult to fell the trees and get them out of the hedge row. A lot of brush and a lot of work because they grow so densely together in a hedge row. That said, it is the best. I was spoiled from all the years of burning it.

Oh, I just burned the last of what I had last winter. I had end stacks of hedge that I never bothered from year to year because the stuff never rots and so I just left the end stacks so I didn't have to do that every year. Some of it was very old, 15 - 20 years old. The reason I mention this is because it's burn characteristics changed drastically. It did not burn as hot or as long as what I was accustomed to. It also did not throw many sparks like it always did. It was as solid as it was day one, but very dry. I don't have an explanation for that except that it was so old and dry. I was very surprised.

smokinjay said:

ksburner said:

We are going to be taking out about 250-300 yards of a hedge row (osage orange) this winter. We have somebody who has agreed to purchase the land in 2 years, but we want to get the hedge posts and firewood cut out before they take possession. We should get a great deal of firewood out of that when it is all said and done.

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Some body going to be busy sharpening chains! ;-)

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Have been cutting hedge for nearly 30 years. "Chipper chain" is the only way to go. Can cut nearly a cord on green on one sharpening.

bikerz said:

smokinjay said:

ksburner said:

We are going to be taking out about 250-300 yards of a hedge row (osage orange) this winter. We have somebody who has agreed to purchase the land in 2 years, but we want to get the hedge posts and firewood cut out before they take possession. We should get a great deal of firewood out of that when it is all said and done.

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Some body going to be busy sharpening chains! ;-)

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Have been cutting hedge for nearly 30 years. "Chipper chain" is the only way to go. Can cut nearly a cord on green on one sharpening.

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I cut 2 16' trailer loads of green hedge last week, at least 3 cords on the same chain and its still not dull.

Constrictor said:

bikerz said:

smokinjay said:

ksburner said:

We are going to be taking out about 250-300 yards of a hedge row (osage orange) this winter. We have somebody who has agreed to purchase the land in 2 years, but we want to get the hedge posts and firewood cut out before they take possession. We should get a great deal of firewood out of that when it is all said and done.

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Some body going to be busy sharpening chains! ;-)

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Have been cutting hedge for nearly 30 years. "Chipper chain" is the only way to go. Can cut nearly a cord on green on one sharpening.

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I cut 2 16' trailer loads of green hedge last week, at least 3 cords on the same chain and its still not dull.

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That has been my experience as well. Hedge/Osage Orange doesn't dull my chains nearly as much as most people say it does. I could typically cut plenty before the chain needed a little touch up. If I wanted to push it to see what type of life I could get out of it I think I could easily cut a cord plus with a single chain.

CountryBoy19 said:

Constrictor said:

bikerz said:

smokinjay said:

ksburner said:

We are going to be taking out about 250-300 yards of a hedge row (osage orange) this winter. We have somebody who has agreed to purchase the land in 2 years, but we want to get the hedge posts and firewood cut out before they take possession. We should get a great deal of firewood out of that when it is all said and done.

Click to expand...

Some body going to be busy sharpening chains! ;-)

Click to expand...

Have been cutting hedge for nearly 30 years. "Chipper chain" is the only way to go. Can cut nearly a cord on green on one sharpening.

Click to expand...

I cut 2 16' trailer loads of green hedge last week, at least 3 cords on the same chain and its still not dull.

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That has been my experience as well. Hedge/Osage Orange doesn't dull my chains nearly as much as most people say it does. I could typically cut plenty before the chain needed a little touch up. If I wanted to push it to see what type of life I could get out of it I think I could easily cut a cord plus with a single chain.

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Don't cut it in a hedge row like around here (Central IL) and expect that. To much stuff embedded in it, like barbed wire fence.

Some day I will have one of you send me a stove's worth just so I can say I tried it...