I do a lab with my high school bio students where they count the seeds in osage oranges and estimate seed production of trees. It is an interesting tree, one of a few native species (which would include honey locust and Kentucky Coffee tree) that apparently were dispersed by species of "megafauna" such as ground sloths or prehistoric horses (not the introduced ones we now have) and had thorns for probable defense against large herbivores. The students find the fruits fascinating, but they are difficult to work with, gloves are best as the latex is hard to remove and itchy to some. It also destroyed our dissection scalpels, they latex won't wash off with soap and water, one needs nasty stuff like acetone to get it off the blades, but then the plastic handles are weakened. So this year I am going to use a large knife to quarter the fruits, and plastic disposable knives for the students to pick out the seeds. I just gathered fruits 2 days ago from under a tree alongside the Bronx River Parkway in White Plains for the lab tomorrow, but I know of another couple of trees near the Bronx River Pkwy entrance from Allerton Ave in the Bronx that also produce fruit. I've always thought it odd that the osage orange looks and smells like citrus, and has leaves that resemble many citrus trees, with spiny branches, but is in the mulberry family. Coincidence perhaps? Ernie DeMarie z6/7 Tuckahoe NY Where Gloxinia nematanthoides "Evita" is blooming up a storm along the wall at my school garden, where its rhizomes overwintered against the building wall. More people should grow it, it is stunning in the ground or in a pot. In a message dated 10/16/2008 11:01:00 A.M. Eastern Standard Time, jwaddick@kc.rr.com writes: Dear Friends, Gardeners on both coasts may not be aware of our mid-western 'Hedge Apples' (Maclura pomifera). Today's local paper, the Kansas City Star, had a lovely picture of a lawn littered with green bowling ball size fruit. This tree is native to a fairly small area in the center of the US, but uncommon more widely. Also known as Osage Orange and Bois D'arc. This is a large tree, normally pretty anonymous to most people. This time of year the large chartreuse green soft-ball size fruits are highly visible on the trees (to 50 ft and more tall) and the fallen fruits litter the ground. They are very attractive; see: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/… 0px-Osage_orange_1.jpg but essentially useless. These fruit litter sidewalks and road sides. They are very dense, solid and difficult to cut. They ooze a sticky latex like sap and can literally cause damage to vehicles parked under them. The wood is strong, dense and very useful particularly for fence posts and at one time bows (thus the Bois d'arc name) . The trees are densely branched and bear many evil sharp thorns, but are impervious to most insects and disease. Thus modern cultivars have been developed as street trees from thornless, fruitless strains. The fruits are abundant now and very beautiful from afar. You just don't want to get too close or handle them much. More info at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Osage-orange/ Just FYI. Best Jim W. (We have a first un - forecast light frost last night. Enough procrastinating !) -- Dr. James W. Waddick 8871 NW Brostrom Rd. Kansas City Missouri 64152-2711 USA Ph. 816-746-1949 Zone 5 Record low -23F Summer 100F + _______________________________________________ pbs mailing list pbs@lists.ibiblio.org http://www.pacificbulbsociety.org/list.php http://pacificbulbsociety.org/pbswiki/ **************New MapQuest Local shows what's happening at your destination. Dining, Movies, Events, News & more. Try it out (http://local.mapquest.com/?ncid=emlcntnew00000002)
