Primitive Archer
Main Discussion Area => Bows => Topic started by: Deerhunter21 on November 20, 2019, 10:46:50 am
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So how do you do it? i wanna cut some Osage but all the fruits are gone, leaves are dead, how do I id it?
edit - also what is a dead giveaway? how can i... lets say 40mph down a country road and look over and say "thats an osage tree!" because i dont live in the country so i have little chance to look for trees so when i am driving along a country road i want to make sure i see them.
P.S. I live in osage country (Nebraska) so there should be a lot.
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There should still be some fruits hanging up out of reach of the deer! I think you have had a fairly mild fall. Google it up and you should get a good winter bark picture. You might check the bookstores for a used tree guide textbook, no point in learning just one tree!
Hawkdancer
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First place it has what I call a tortured crown, limbs going every which way. It also has a dark color in the winter that is slightly off from every other tree around, yellow gray.
(https://i.imgur.com/tfDZDQf.jpg)
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so kinda like bur oak?
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Nope, osage is so distinctive once you can recognise it you can pick it out of a fence row in the winter from a quarter mile away, it stands out. You can do the same in the summer because the dark green shiny leaves stand out as well.
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There will still be plenty of fruit remains around the bases. Whole fruit or just seeds.
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Milky sap
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Milky sap
Hard to detect at 40 mph. ;)
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Most of the osage here in N. Missouri aren't real tall, often times found in a clump, but also very common in fence rows --the local Amish often plant and use them for this purpose .
Shouldn't be difficult to find in your pat of the country.
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The monkeyball fruit is a dead giveaway, but only the female trees bear fruit, and not every female tree is a heavy producer or makes fruit every year. I know of entire osage rows that never grow the fruit for whatever reasons.
Like Eric said, they're unique enough to be easy to recognize, with a little experience. After a while, ya just kinda know.
From a distance, with all the leaves off, they do give off a greenish yellow cast in the outer branches, relative to other nearby trees.
You could find some likely suspects, take some good pictures of the bark, branches, whole tree, and post them here.
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If you run into an osage tree at 40mph it will show the white sap. ;)
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And if you run into it at 60 mph you might see the yellow heartwood :OK
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And if you run into it at 80 mph you might see all the Osage trees in the area as you fly up with your wings!
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Moral: when looking for Osage at any speed, either ride shotgun, or don't drive faster than your guardian angel can fly! It's out there!
Hawkdancer
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Adding more:
Another Tip if the roots are exposed at all (I harvested some osage where it was all ripped up to clear land for cattle grazing), the roots are a distinct bright orange color.
Also, it has sharp thorns in the branches! Not too many othertrees with its size and description do, and the bark looks very different than say honey locust (which has longer thorns usually)
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Keep an eye out for roots if you are walking along a creek. They don't necessarily frequent creeks (like cottonwoods for instance), but the roots really stand out if there is one there.
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Yep, I have asked for and given permission to pull osage out of a land clearing burn pile after I spotted this blaze orange roots from a long distance away.
Not all osage has thorns, I gave away a some marvelous osage staves years ago because the tree didn't have thorns and I thought it was mulberry. When I was back in the area I cut the tree a year later, every sprout coming out of the stump was a mass of thorns.
This one didn't have a thorn either but its sprouts did a year later.
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Nice logs. That makes me want to go cut some.
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I gotta buy a chainsaw... Christmas is here!!!!! AND MY BIRTHDAY!!!! well now i need to debate what flintknapping tools to get, what bow making tools to get, and what i should get for just plain fun!
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Go for the fun things! They fit the other two, as well! Most days anyway! Tools usually last longer, though!
Hawkdancer
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Yella Gold
HH~
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Re: Hedgehunters, picture - You will also need wedges and sledges! Got a dandy splitting sledge, barely used, but probably not accurate enough for splitting out staves. Be ready to work when you get to the cutting and splitting! And watch out for the tree fall! )-w(!
Hawkdancer
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I don't know how experienced you are with a chainsaw but they are dangerous beasts. Osage often hangs up in other trees and won't make it to the ground when cut. Despite your best efforts some cuts will pinch your saw blade and leave you frustrated. Be prepared, have wedges and a sledge handy to open pinched cuts up. Two saws are a handy thing to have as well. Some of my friends have sustained grievous cuts from their saws, I have cut through my bluejeans twice but got lucky and only scratched my skin. There have been many close calls when I was paying complete attention to what I was doing.
As for sharpening your saw this new contraption can't be beat. It files the tooth and the rake at the same time to just the right height. Stihl sells an orange one of these for twice the price, this one is German made and is exactly the same one Stihl sells but in blue.They sell these on ebay. If you get one they make 3 sizes for the 3 different size chains that might be found in saws of different sizes. You have to get the one that fits your saw.
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The only thing worse than having to leave your chainsaw stuck in a pinched kerf while you go home to get a hammer and wedge is coming back and finding that someone else had a hammer and wedge. And now has another saw. >:( >:(
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I'd advise anyone planning on spending time with a chainsaw to invest in a pair of chainsaw chaps. The Kevlar ones are lighter and more flexible than the old ones that were heavy canvas and metal mesh. The chaps are a lot cheaper than stitches.
I recently moved my wedge stash and found out I've accumulated a half dozen splitting wedges and two felling wedges. Fella can't have too many wedges it seems.
These days I prefer to spend some money and buy a good stave at places like MoJAM. Heck of lot easier than finding, felling, splitting, hauling and seasoning the do it yourself way.
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If in doubt, take a few staves from the suspect trees. Dry and season them. Make bows from the seasoned wood. Are they dynamite, killer bows? If yes, rest assured, you found Bodark.
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Thanks guys! im going on a run (hopefully) during fall break. ill let you know how it goes.
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I've had my chainsaw pinched a few times where I couldn't get it out... and once in the bottom/butt cut while attempting to drop the tree. The tree was held fast by its neighbors branches. Afterwards the bar was unusable. But I always carry a spare bar and chain on any osage outing. Usually, you can detach the bar and leave it there, put the spare bar on and continue. Get an extra bar and a few chains.
I have 16 steel wedges as well as some wooden ones made with osage and ironwood.