Osage Orange, my new favorite

[ChrisNJ]

Posted last weekend on cl about Irene dropping this I got all excited until I relised I could not get there until today and what do you know, it was still laying in the street, loaded as much as I could in my mini truck and after splitting the first piece I fell in love, just wish it wasn't so uncommon around here but the weight of this stuff makes Black Locust seem light by comparison :-O
(broken link removed to http://i567.photobucket.com/albums/ss120/Rhombus_2009/011.jpg)

btw still some left I cant get too until next Wednesday, so all you Princeton/Lawrence scroungers steer clear

 

[tfdchief]

Black Locust seem light by comparison

Yep, it is the best. I can't believe you got it scrounge! Congrats on a great score! I burned hedge almost exclusively for many years. Then my source dried up and I seldom get to cut it anymore. After burning hedge, nothing else even comes close. Black Locust, Hickory, and Oak are good but Hedge is way better. Closer to coal than wood. Great score. Go get the rest of it ASAP. By the way, by the look of the end of some of those rounds, some of that has been cut way before Irene, not that it matters. Hedge will last forever ;-P

 

[shawneyboy]

You can't burn that in your stove. It puts out way to many BTUs. For that reason I will gladly dispose of it. It may be a bit of a haul for me but since we are both members here, I will sacrafice my time, and clean that up for you.

Shawn

 

[maxed_out]

sweet score. I didnt know we had oo around here...I thought they mostly a midwest wood.

 

[CodyWayne718]

Nice score. Just a word of advice for when you burn it, be careful opening the door of your stove. Sparks will get ya!

 

[NextEndeavor]

Great stuff with a heck of a sparkler show when you open the door for reloads!

 

[Corey]

Now you'll be spoiled for anything else! Hedge makes everything else look like a light weight! Be ready for some serious coals and long over night burns.

If you're lucky, you can hit a bunch of coals with a blast of fresh air and get a real sparkler show which will put most 4th of July fireworks to shame. Just be ready for it!

 

[wood-fan-atic]

It resembles black locust. I would render a guess that they are cousins?

 

[Thistle]

It resembles black locust. I would render a guess that they are cousins?

Nope.Its in the Mulberry family,distant cousin.Hardest & Heaviest wood in temperate North America.As decay resistant as Redwood,many times stronger though.

 

[onetracker]

It resembles black locust. I would render a guess that they are cousins?

Nope.Its in the Mulberry family,distant cousin.Hardest & Heaviest wood in temperate North America.As decay resistant as Redwood,many times stronger though.

also the best bow wood in north america. i'd put locust at #2.

osage it resembles locust in that it has a spongy, useless (for bowmaking) lighter sapwood and a rock hard yellow-orange heartwood.

 

[lukem]

You're going to like that stuff. I burned some for the first time last year and it was great. I now have about a cord of it c/s/s for '12/'13. May get into it this winter in the coldest nights. Going to try to get another couple cord of it this fall.

 

[chvymn99]

Extremely great wood. You just need to be careful when opening up the door to reload, loves to throws sparks.

 

[richg]

Is that from the guy on Route 27 in Franklin park? He has a ton of downed stuff in his front yard.

 

[certified106]

That's awesome! I wish I could find some of that stuff around here. I had never even heard of osage orange until I joined Hearth.com but now I look for it just because I want to try it lol.

 

[ChrisNJ]

Is that from the guy on Route 27 in Franklin park? He has a ton of downed stuff in his front yard.

No this is from Lawrenceville, hope that it is still there Wednesday, if not I know there is lots of other stuff out there for my lunch time foray.

 

[cygnus]

Wow. And I thought the recent 'hickory at the curb' post in Edison was a score.

 

[ddklahr]

I came across a bunch of old hedgeposts (Osage Orange) out in our pasture my grandfather must have piled up 25+ years ago. I brought them up and cut them up over the weekend. Needless to say, they were a little tough on the chains. I started splitting it last night and some of them made the 37 ton splitter groan a bit! It should end up being a half a cord or better when it is all split up. I put a moisture tester to a few of the pieces and it did not move off of 0%. I don't think I will have to worry about it being too wet for this Winter.

 

[woodchip]

I don't think I will have to worry about it being too wet for this Winter.

Stuff's probably so dense that there is hardly any space for moisture when it's growing.........

Knowing how highly prized it is, has anyone considered growing it as a fuel crop?

If I were out there, I'd probably have a yardfull growing happily ;-)

 

[Thistle]

lol I've thought about it but dont have 50-70 yrs minimum to wait for its maturity though ;-P

 

[Adios Pantalones]

It resembles black locust. I would render a guess that they are cousins?

Nope.Its in the Mulberry family,distant cousin.Hardest & Heaviest wood in temperate North America.As decay resistant as Redwood,many times stronger though.

also the best bow wood in north america. i'd put locust at #2.

osage it resembles locust in that it has a spongy, useless (for bowmaking) lighter sapwood and a rock hard yellow-orange heartwood.

I've made bows of osage, yew, and several other native woods. We could have the "yallar wood vs. white wood" debate, but I do like osage- mostly for its moisture resistance. Yew makes a great bow, but it dings up easily. I would still say that I like yew better than BL. I am also quite partial to white ash as a bow wood.

 

[Badfish740]

btw still some left I cant get too until next Wednesday, so all you Princeton/Lawrence scroungers steer clear

Hey-that's my turf! :lol: Just kiddin... Have you taken a ride up 206 getting toward the airport lately? A lot of the big homes that sit way back off of the road (on the right if you're northbound) have some massive trees down. They'll probably just sit there until they rot. I got a good score a couple of years ago when they put power poles in on the ETS side of Carter Road-a lot of silver maple and ash. Its not a bad area to scrounge because the Princeton/Lawrence crowd aren't really woodburning types, and if they do its the $5 bundle from the supermarket in the fireplace. I have a plain white F-350 XL (Work package-no hubcaps, etc...) so when I get out and start sawing people just assume I'm part of a road crew

 

[ChrisNJ]

btw still some left I cant get too until next Wednesday, so all you Princeton/Lawrence scroungers steer clear

Hey-that's my turf! :lol: Just kiddin... Have you taken a ride up 206 getting toward the airport lately? A lot of the big homes that sit way back off of the road (on the right if you're northbound) have some massive trees down. They'll probably just sit there until they rot. I got a good score a couple of years ago when they put power poles in on the ETS side of Carter Road-a lot of silver maple and ash. Its not a bad area to scrounge because the Princeton/Lawrence crowd aren't really woodburning types, and if they do its the $5 bundle from the supermarket in the fireplace. I have a plain white F-350 XL (Work package-no hubcaps, etc...) so when I get out and start sawing people just assume I'm part of a road crew

I usually dont make it that far from Hamilton, kinda just loop through Lawrence to Terhune and then towards the malls and back to work. I will get out there now though.

I did go back for the rest of the Osage, however I missed it by a very short time as the pavement was still wet from where the township picked it up :-( Was gonna grab all the twigs also

 

[Badfish740]

I usually dont make it that far from Hamilton, kinda just loop through Lawrence to Terhune and then towards the malls and back to work. I will get out there now though.

I did go back for the rest of the Osage, however I missed it by a very short time as the pavement was still wet from where the township picked it up :-( Was gonna grab all the twigs also

I come through that way because I live up in Hunterdon but work in Mercer. Hopewell Township tends to be slim pickins because I'm pretty sure it's the woodburning capital of Central NJ :lol:

 

[basswidow]

I have a plain white F-350 XL (Work package-no hubcaps, etc...) so when I get out and start sawing people just assume I'm part of a road crew

If you set out some orange cones and wear an orange safety vest - this also makes it believable. Don't ask me how I know this.

 

[woodchip]

I have a plain white F-350 XL (Work package-no hubcaps, etc...) so when I get out and start sawing people just assume I'm part of a road crew

If you set out some orange cones and wear an orange safety vest - this also makes it believable. Don't ask me how I know this.

Several years ago a tree came down in the park near our house. Knowing how slow the council are to react, I put on some green overalls (our local council workers wear green overalls), and just went and bucked it and bought it in. The only problem I encountered was an old woman walking her dog who was moaning about how the council were wasting her taxes and how I ought to be out in the street clearing leaves as they were dangerous to old people...... I just said yes mam, I'd pass it on......... ;-)