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Osage Orange Lumber and Bow Blanks

osage orange lumber from timber works

Osage Orange is among the niche wood and dried lumber products available from Timber Works!

When dried, Maclura pomifera, commonly referred to as Osage Orange or hedge-apple in the Midwestern region, has the highest BTU rating of any North American hardwood—Osage Orange actually burns about half as hot as coal!

Super Strong and Versatile Wood

While hard to find, straight-grained Osage Orange is an ideal wood for making compound bows.
In addition to making fantastic firewood, Osage Orange got its other nickname, Hedge Apple, because it is widely planted and used as a wind break along fence rows, especially in the prairie states.

Because it grows and spreads aggressively, Osage is an ideal break to prevent soil erosion across large, otherwise barren stretches of land. If left unattended, Osage can easily grow 3′ – 6′ in a single season!

In some parts of the country Osage is harvested for fence posts because of its high degree of rot resistance. Osage is remarkably free from insect and fungal enemies. In fact, the fruit of Osage Orange is commonly used as insect repellant due because it contains elemol, a chemical effective at repelling mosquitos, ticks, crickets and spiders.

While hard to find, straight-grained Osage Orange is an ideal wood for making compound bows.

Though it is only naturally indigenous to the Red River region of Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas, Osage Orange has been widely naturalized throughout the United States and parts of Canada.

Osage Orange Gallery

  • white oak foliage, bark and typical form
  • black walnut info graphic
  • red oak info graphic
  • hickory info graphic
From left to right: White Oak, Black Walnut, Red Oak, Hickory (inc. Shagbark and Shalebark), Hard Maple (inc. Sugar and Black) and Tulip Poplar.
While Osage Orange is by no means a staple of our sawmill, because of its growing popularity with wood workers as well as its consistent demand among bow craftsmen, we keep a little Osage around the mill. Whether you’re looking for dimensional Osage, slabs or bow blanks, give Timber Works a call.

Check out the beautiful, rustic look of a superb Osage Orange bench over at The Wood Whisperer.

Comments 6

  1. Hi – I am interested in some Maclura tinctoria Mora or Osage Orange for cabinet and drawer facing. Can you give me a brief description of sizes and costs? I understand that it changes from light to dark over a relatively short time, which is why I am interested in this particular wood.

    thanks,
    Donn

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  4. Hello…I’m interested in osage orange lumber for a couple bow blanks. I would need them to be straight-grained and at least 70” in length. I plan to back them with bamboo. I’d like to make them 60# bows. Let me know if you have what I’m looking for and what it would cost.
    Thank you.
    Will Baughman

  6. I would like to get on the waiting list for a blank of Osage for a self bow of at least 70 inches.

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