Osage Orange

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My friend tells me he’s working in Hershey PA and this is everywhere. Gave brother a full cord of split Osage orange firewood. This wood is hottest burning wood I ever witnessed. Anyone have this growing near them or on their property?
 
Had a few in my yard growing up. We called them monkey ball trees. They had a strange fruit, grapefruit sized green balls, that had no use for anything. We used to put piles in the street for cars to smash and make a mess. The branches were as hard as iron. I would chop at them with my hatchet but lost interest before I could cut through.
 
There is a 250 foot wide by 1/2 mile long strip of it within easy walking distance of my house. It is all over the place in this area. It is also known as "hedge", and the fruit is called "hedge apples".

People have been burning it in wood stoves here, to heat their homes and shops, for decades now. This is nothing new.
 
I see them frequently in the woods. I wouldn't want one near my home and have to clean up the monkey balls. As messy as a sweet gum tree.
 
yep, have plenty of them around me, good firewood and when i was a kid the local farmer would use the wood to replace broken ax handles etc... must be a good wood to use for that
 
My dad and I planted 2 osage oranges (monkey balls) aside the driveway.
Nothing ever sprouted.
It would've been more educational to cut one open.

I have no idea if they're full of seeds like a melon or if like an acorn...one larger seed.
 
A friend’s parents leave some of the balls in the unfinished part of the farmhouse basement to keep insects away. I’m not sure if it really works or is just an old wives tale.
 
This is probably the better place to ask about a species of wood.

 
The old wives tale of them keeping spiders away is just a myth. I have a line of them at the road of my house. The balls fall onto the road shoulder and people will stop to pick them up. They are a mean tree with very sharp stickers that will draw blood. I try to stay away from mine. I will pick up the balls and put them in the back of my lot, I split them with a shovel and the squirrels will eat the seeds out of them. About 25 Years ago the line of trees was cut down but the stumps were left, the trees then sprouted new growth which filled the entire row in. If you cut a branch back 3 more will grow from the cut. The power company trimmed them this summer and I bet they will grow back with a vengeance.
 

makes great drum shells.


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Used to heat with wood, cut my own wood. Hardest wood I ever encountered was this stuff. I've actually seen sparks fly when cutting it with my chain saw. Dull your chain quickly.

We just call them Hedge Apple trees.
 
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