Got to meet Hedgerow, and some of his Hedge!

[Morgan in AR]

bois d' arc

I'll do you one better doc... The hedge tree I cut that log out of has no hedge apples on it... And the wood will dry dark... Almost brown as it seasons... And yet??? It's still hedge... :hmm3grin2orange:

It's pretty hard to mistake.

 

[Hedgerow]

It's pretty hard to mistake.

Absolutely!!! Both Hedge and Mulberry are indeed yellow wood, but nothing about the overall tree is the same. I had to cut some up last night so the neighbor could get the combine into our corn field without scratching up his pretty green paint. So I figured I'd take some pics, best I could with the phone. Then I got some of seasoned hedge in a pile... This may take a couple minutes, so let's start with the fruit of these gems... AKA Hedge apples / Monkey brains / whatever you want to call em'...

This one had fallen off already!

Here they are in their natural habitat... Notice the yellowed leaves. Stressful dry year this year. They may drop leaves early.
But they're extremely resilient trees...

When these heavyweights drop on the metal barn roof, it's enough noise to send the beagle packing up to the porch...:msp_rolleyes:

 

[Hedgerow]

The tree I had to de-limb was this dandy... I always try to leave the big portion of the tree, and just take the offending limbs. These ole' girls don't just spring up over night, but will always grow new limbs.
Note: No Hedge apples on this tree... Why? Cause some don't produce any. I'm sure a botanist could explain the whole Male/Female thing going on there, but I ain't gonna.

Note the tuft of leaves growing through the Y of the tree. Those do not belong to this tree. That would be a small Hackberry tree growing through the fork in an attempt to get some light. It got killed last night...:msp_tongue:

Sometimes too many...

 

[Hedgerow]

I read Doc's story about the thorns... They got em'... Here's the picture for size reference... Not anything like the Honey Locust, but annoying and skin tearing all the same...

 

[Hedgerow]

Here's a close shot of the fresh cut limbs about 6-7 inchers.
See??? They bleed when ya cut em'... That white sap is like glue... Gets all over ya, then dirt sticks to it...
Sorta like a protective layer on yer hands and pants...

And a leaf to boot!!!

Yes my chain is too agressive... But it's a 16" bar on a 520 Makita, so it just makes damn quick work of limbs!!!
Kickback???
You bet yer ass...
:hell_boy:

 

[Hedgerow]

Now on to this yellow wood as it seasons... Here are pics of a pile of hedge that's been stacked there for almost a year.
Look how dark it gets sitting in the sun... If you can mill some decent pieces, it makes beautiful furniture I'm told...
Not being exactly "in touch" with my artistic side, I just burn it...:msp_sneaky:

Lot of BTU's in that pile right there... It's over flow from the barn... I'll be burning that in my stove this year...

Just as soon as I get done burning my way through all the freaking cookies I've cut testing saws and chains...
:amazed:

 

[ShaneLogs]

Now on to this yellow wood as it seasons... Here are pics of a pile of hedge that's been stacked there for almost a year.
Look how dark it gets sitting in the sun... If you can mill some decent pieces, it makes beautiful furniture I'm told...
Not being exactly "in touch" with my artistic side, I just burn it...:msp_sneaky:

Lot of BTU's in that pile right there... It's over flow from the barn... I'll be burning that in my stove this year...

Just as soon as I get done burning my way through all the freaking cookies I've cut testing saws and chains...
:amazed:

Yeah, I am in the same boat as you with all the cookies!

 

[jerrycmorrow]

seems like i recall that the old farm home admin encouraged planting these along fence rows during the dust bowl years to form a barrier for windblown dirt.
we had these where i grew up. called 'em bois d'arc trees and called the fruit horse apples. the best part was when we convince new kids that they were edible and got them to take a bite. one bite is all it takes

 

[Hedgerow]

seems like i recall that the old farm home admin encouraged planting these along fence rows during the dust bowl years to form a barrier for windblown dirt.
we had these where i grew up. called 'em bois d'arc trees and called the fruit horse apples. the best part was when we convince new kids that they were edible and got them to take a bite. one bite is all it takes

Yup!!! Look good... Smell good...
But ain't...

I've seen turkeys and squirrels shred the rotten ones to eat the seeds though...
I've seen cattle eat them whole too...

 

[Steve NW WI]

Nobody ever accused cows of being smart, DSS maybe being the one exception...

 

[Hedgerow]

Nobody ever accused cows of being smart, DSS maybe being the one exception...

Naaaaaaaa....
:big_smile:

 

[Mac88]

Great pics and tutorial on hedge there, Hedgerow. For folks that have never encountered it, they will
have a lot better understanding of our "fetish" for that stuff.

 

[Morgan in AR]

Nobody ever accused cows of being smart, DSS maybe being the one exception...

cows aren't stupid, but sometimes you can't tell.

 

[Mac88]

Here's some of ours. Like a fine wine, "Well Aged".

 

[Hedgerow]

Ooooh!!! The pre-dead and barkless variety!!! Very nice... Those go in my "burn at your convenience" stack...
If ya want something that can actually break teeth off a chain, cut that 3-4" dead barkless limb wood that's still hanging on the tree...

 

[cre73]

I've always wanted to be able to attend of these get togethers but y'all are making me nervous talking about this "log swapping" and "wood swapping" but hey maybe its just a Wisconsin thing.:msp_tongue:

 

[Hedgerow]

I've always wanted to be able to attend of these get togethers but y'all are making me nervous talking about this "log swapping" and "wood swapping" but hey maybe its just a Wisconsin thing.:msp_tongue:

Come to DesMoine October 6th and find out...
:boss:

Bout every chainsaw made will be there most likely... If ya ever wanted to run a "fill in the blank here" saw, it'll likely be there...

But what happens in Wisconsin, Stays in Wisconsin...

 

[Mac88]

Ooooh!!! The pre-dead and barkless variety!!! Very nice... Those go in my "burn at your convenience" stack...
If ya want something that can actually break teeth off a chain, cut that 3-4" dead barkless limb wood that's still hanging on the tree...

Actually this wasn't pre-dead. We hauled it home (4 loads in a 6x10 trailer, mostly big branches) from a fresh cut tree
down the road. It laid on the ground out back for over 5 years before we got around to cutting it up and splitting it. Most
of the bark came off going through the splitter.

 

[Arbonaut]

Nobody ever accused cows of being smart, DSS maybe being the one exception...

Hee Haw. When people say cows are smarter than you think, I remind them not to punch one in the head. They won't even feel it, but your hand will.