North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Suzi Teghtmeyer <srt175f@smsu.edu>]

Chris,
This following is verbatim from an article I found:

The Versatile Osage-Orange.
Author(s):  Ball, Jeff
Source: American Forests, Autumn 2000, Vol. 106 (3), p60, 3p

......The tree's fruits contain a chemical (2,3,4,5-tetrahydroxystilbene) 
that has been proven to repel many of those pesky insects that get into 
homes: cockroaches, crickets, spiders, fleas, box elder bugs, and ants. The 
chemical does not kill the insects but for some reason effectively repels 
them from the area where the fruit is located. Whole ripened fruit left 
sitting on the floor in places where insects are a problem will usually 
repel pests for up to two months.

For more immediate control, cut the fruit in half or crush it on the 
driveway with your car, then place it in a dish set in the pest problem 
area. This method is good for repelling insects for a few weeks.

The milky juice in the tree's stems and fruit may irritate some people's 
skin, especially after long periods of exposure. If you are working with 
the fruit to get seeds, for example, it is best to wear rubber gloves.
<snip>

I hope this helps!!
----Suzi Teghtmeyer
Head Librarian, Paul Evans Library of Fruit Science
Southwest Missouri State University Mtn. Grove Campus and Missouri Fruit 
Experiment Station
9740 Red Spring Rd, Mountain Grove, MO 65711
Phone: 417-926-4105, Fax: 417-926-6646,  email: srt175f@smsu.edu
URL: http://library.smsu.edu/paulevans/pelIndex.htm
Member: CBHL, USAIN, ALA, ACRL, IAALD

At 10:11 PM 11/12/2001 +0000, Christopher Mauchline wrote:
>Question: I have heard these can be used as an insect repellant.  Is
>this true? And if so, how are they used?
>
>Thanks,
>
>Chris Mauchline
>SE PA, zone 6


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