What to do with Osage oranges?

[hrhofmann]

I have access to a couple dozen Osage Oranges if I want them. But, I can't figure out what to do with them. Help!

[David E. Ross]

If you mean the fruit, it is not edible.

If you mean the trees, they can grow quite large -- to 60 ft tall and 40 ft wide, making nice shade trees. Or they can be trimmed to form a tall hedge (not less than 6 ft) that provides some security because new growth is quite thorny.

Osage orange (Maclura pomifera) is quite hardy down to 10F and actually needs significant winter chill. It will NOT grow in my climate because my winters are too mild.

The fruit might be considered ornamental. There are male and female plants. The female plants will not set fruit unless there is a nearby male plant. (Such plants are called "dioecious". Dioecious plants include asparagus, ash trees, and ginkgo trees.)

[Fran Farmer]

I assume you mean the fruit which is inedible.

A fried of mine does the most wonderful display of them. He makes a pyramid of them out the front of his house on the nature strip. They look wonderful.

[Steve Peek]

They are supposed to make wonderful bug repellants.

[~misfit~]

Urban myth....

"The belief about the use of hedge apples for insect control is widespread and persistent. it is claimed that placing hedge apples around the foundation or inside the basement will repel or control insects. A few years ago, Iowa State University toxicologists extracted compounds from hedge apples. When concentrated, these compounds were found to repel insects.

Scientists also found that natural concentrations of these compounds in the fruit were too low to be an effective repellent. So, don't be fooled into spending much to use hedge apples as an insect repellent."

From

[Drew Lawson]

Play softball?

Odd looking trees, but the wood is beautiful.

[Brooklyn1]

Plant them.

Wonderful wood for turning, and is extremely durable... years ago I bought some blanks for making pens and knife bolsters.

[Don Wiss]

Years ago I put a pile of them on my stoop:

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).

[Brooklyn1]

Very attractive doors.

[Fran Farmer]

I agree. They are gorgeous doors (and nice looking Osage Oranges too).

[Don Wiss]

They are better looking now. I removed those brass sheets at the bottom that were covering over damaged wood. I had wood veneered over the damage. And I removed the metal plates that were surrounding the locks. And the not-in-use brass doorbell was removed and the stone filled in. (There is now an intercom.)

What is missing are the solid wood doors that were just behind the pair of glass doors. The fellow that sold the house in 1959 took them. And still has them in his basement. (He also took off and gave away many of the overmantles. All this done after the contract was signed and before the closing.)

I picked up the osage oranges in Prospect Park. There could be some there now.

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).

[Fran Farmer]

What a mongrel act!!!!! BTW, gorgeous house and stunning timber work, but I'd like to know what a 'pocket door' happens to be? I've not heard that term before.

[Don Wiss]

The fellow that was buying the house in 1959 caught him taking the doors. They were friends. He let the doors be taken. I don't know about all the overmantels. But at the time it was a rooming house and people didn't care so much about these things.

A pocket door slides into the wall. The house has eight of them. Half of them double doors, and half single doors.

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).

[Fran Farmer]

Ah! Thank you for explaining. That name makes such obvious sense but I've not heard that term used for such style doors before. I can't even bring to mind the name we use for those sorts of doors in this country. No doubt I'll wake up at 2 am and remember.

[songbird]

...

we've called them sliding doors. :)

songbird

[Frank]

I would not want the trees on my property. Always worrying about getting thumped on the head by them when walking in woods and park. I see squirrels eat them but apparently not deer.

[Brooklyn1]

Those brass kick plates protect the door bottoms (why the door bottoms were damaged under the metal), they'd look better were they made of thicker gauge metal that wasn't rippled... one can also find cast brass/bronze kick plates, some with intricate molded designs. The kick plates in your picturre are installed incorrectly, they are not supposed to go all the way to the edge of the wood, should be a 3/4" wood border exposed all around, especially at the bottom... should also be attached with flat head countersunk screws.

The locks and estuchion plates could have easily been antiqued to match the door handles... the lock estuchions protect the wood from being scratched/gouged by keys swinging on a ring... those plates also add secrurity, makes it much more difficult to jimmy the lock bolt.

Is there some sort of canapy/awning protecting the wood from the elements?

[Don Wiss]

All of the lower portion of the doors around here get damaged from the snow. It piles up against the bottom of the door. Remember the doors here are all over 100 years old. For example, my house was built in 1891.

The doors open out. There are real original kick plates on the inside. But kick plates would never be on the side of a door that opens out.

One could make them look better, but they would still be wrong and inappropriate for the outside of our doors. Inlaying a piece of matching veneer is the only right way to handle the situation.

I don't use a key ring. I only carry a single key. The plates were replaced by circular security rings. If someone wanted to break in they would break the glass. But a break-in at the top of the stoop is rather visible. Any breakins that take place would be under the stoop, where they can kick the door in unseen.

No.

Don.

(e-mail link at home page bottom).