Osage orange fence

No longer needed as fence or other uses, the once extensive patchwork of hedge rows is now marked only by scattered remnants. Osage Orange Living fence slurry? While the seeds are technically edible and beloved by squirrels, it’s not a. What I love about the wood is the strength, the resistance to decay and the natural curves, as well as the color. It is one of the heaviest woods in North America and rates at the top for resistance to weathering.

Anti-fungal and anti-oxidant compounds that protect the wood from decay have been identified in the heartwood. Orange Fence can install gates, arbors, pergolas, and has a DIY center! Now even the barbed wire is gone from most fields. Farmers have a little more land to cultivate and plow and plant to roads and lanes, some even turning their tractors and other equipment around in the roads.

Thin line posts can be pounded into the ground with a sledgehammer. Thick corner posts are easier to handle when the post hole is dug or augered out first. It’s sometimes called Bois d’arc, which literally means “bow wood” in American French. The wood was once used as fence posts throughout the Midwest. This plant has some cultivated varieties.

The hedge tree is cut into post that are not treated or peeled so they have the bark on them. Unfortunately I have to load them by hand as I have no equipment. Most are just heavy. Once they get over to in diameter they get next to impossible to manage single handed.

Free 2-day Shipping On Millions of Items. It has many other benefits and should be considered on larger lots. When exposed to sun, the beautiful yellow-orange turns gray…but just the upper millimeter or so. I used the Jamestown varnish diluted with naphtha. These distinctly ugly, almost otherworldly-looking fruits are considered inedible because of the texture and taste, but they are very interesting and fun to grow.

The branches grow up into a round shape when left to their own devices, but many people train these hedges to form fences and barriers. The tree also serves as a windbreak. SurvivalistGardener 16views. Then it retreate perhaps ahead of advancing glaciers.

Thousands of years later, because it was cultivated and planted by settlers as inexpensive fencing, it once again spread. Ending Jul at 6:46PM PDT 6d 9h. Farmers and ranchers would use the tree to build a “living fence,” as it was nearly impenetrable to cattle, horses and other animals. It was widely planted in the Midwest as a living fence because, when pruned into a hedge, it provided an impenetrable barrier to livestock.

Some people called them hedge apples, since they were often planted and maintained as a hedge. When growing singly, they can get over feet tall. If a row of the trees is planted close together and kept well-prune they will form an impenetrable hedge which acts as a very effective fence. This usage has given the tree alternate names like “hedge apple” and “hedge ball. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones through 9. It was formerly planted as hedgerows or living fences elsewhere on the prairie and reputed to be: Horse high, bull strong and hog tight.

Workers crafted bows and other weaponry from its sturdy yet flexible wood. Because of this, they are often used as a natural wind break. Both song birds and upland game birds find shelter and food below its low hanging branches. If allowed to dry out, the wood burns hot and long, and has one.

Outside of its ability to grow fast, this unique tree produces many sharp, steel strong thorns that make it the perfect tree for home security.