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market-farming - Re: [Market-farming] pressure treated organic?/wood for posts

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  • From: road's end farm <organic101 AT linkny.com>
  • To: Market Farming <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [Market-farming] pressure treated organic?/wood for posts
  • Date: Wed, 14 Nov 2007 22:47:18 -0500


On Nov 14, 2007, at 7:59 PM, Shawnee Flowerfarmer wrote:

<x-tad-smaller> Catalpa trees provide one of the few temperate forest woods that don't rot the way expensive lumber like teak doesn't.  A professor at Morton Arboretum says that there are still Catalpa fence posts in Northern Illinois and Southern Wisconsin from the 1830's/40's. </x-tad-smaller>
<x-tad-smaller>  </x-tad-smaller>
<x-tad-smaller> Catalpa seeds germinate within two weeks of harvest, and the tree, while young, can grow five feet a year with nurturing.  Before using a source like teak, you might be on the look out for catalpa salvage.  Just this week, a young arborist told me about cutting down a 100 year old catalpa; he wanted a place to dump the wood.</x-tad-smaller>
<x-tad-smaller>  </x-tad-smaller>
<x-tad-smaller> Also, today an elderly farmer asked me if I could start a crop of Osage Orange trees for him.  He remembers how rot resistent the wood is and recalled that a chain saw could barely cut down an old one, throwing sparks in every direction.</x-tad-smaller>
<x-tad-smaller>  </x-tad-smaller>
<x-tad-smaller> Remember, there were solutions to lumber decay before there was treated wood and before it was common to clear cut tropical rainforests to meet our needs.</x-tad-smaller>
<x-tad-smaller>  </x-tad-smaller>
<x-tad-smaller> Shawnee, zone 5 with spectacular sunsets this week....</x-tad-smaller>

The classic wood for fenceposts in this area used to be thorny locust (black locust I think); still occasionally available.

If it's not already growing in your area, however, use caution: in some situations this can be invasive. And it's very hard to get rid of, once established: it regrows very fast when it's cut, which is useful for fenceposts or firewood, not so good if you don't want it there.

-- Rivka; Finger Lakes NY, Zone 5 mostly
Fresh-market organic produce, small scale



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