North American Fruit Explorers mailing list at ibiblio

[Rondi <dee@mokalive.com>]

on 11/6/03 4:34 PM, nafex-request@lists.ibiblio.org at
nafex-request@lists.ibiblio.org wrote:

> Subject: Re: [NAFEX] Re: Maclura pomifera osage orange uses
> To: North American Fruit Explorers <nafex@lists.ibiblio.org>
> Message-ID: <BBD00484.153E5%lonrom@hevanet.com>
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"
> 
> I've had Osage Orange for about 20 years and the trees are not much more
> than 7 feet tall now.  They are painfully slow growing in the Oregon
> climate.  It appears they need more heat and summer rainfall than we have.
> -Lon Rombough



Osage Orange or Hedge as it's called here in SE Kansas does like hot sunny
summers. The summer often has an August drought which doesn't seem to bother
them. They are not a tall tree often having many branches that curl downward
and of course are full of thorns which hinders deer.(farmers here can get 8
deer hunting liscence for free and do what they want with the deer each
year. Deer are a real problem. With all the grain and such growing in this
area the deer get a much higher percentage of protein in their diet which
causes about 100% birth success and when your talking twins or triplets you
can see how fast deer can become a problem)

They've been grown here for some time and there are reportedly 100 year old
fence posts still functioning. The wood is extremely hard and dulls chain
saws real quick. This next spring I'll be using them for gate posts, corning
posts on the fence line and in the vineyard. It's used for firewood, but not
recommended for indoor woodstoves as it burns too hot and can damage
chimneys.

Also, when a lone one is out in the pasture the cows often with rest under
them.

Rondi

ps the kids call the osage's fruit monkey brains!