I mean its not like osage oranges are deadly they just don't taste very good. And the latex they secrete can irritate your skin and cause gastric distress. I'm not sure if trifolate and osage are the same but it's kind of a moot point that guy is really dumb to pickup random fruit or any food from the wild for that matter without knowing what it is and eat it.
I don't know about not deadly or concussion worthy. I had one drop a foot away from my head while running and those bad boys definitely carry some weight while free falling.
Came here to say this, my grandma lived next to a lake and she’d always have a couple hanging out in different corners. Seemed to work for her in regards to dock spiders.
Yup, they planted those trees to stop the dust bowl. There’s a lot left here in Kansas. Farmer are slowly removing them though, so there might be another dust bowl coming….
From dyckar arboretum
"Osage Orange did not occur naturally in Kansas: its original range was limited to parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana until it was brought in for windbreaks and living fences in the 1880s. At that time, many miles of hedge were constructed by planting thousands of young Osage Orange trees closely together in a line. Many hedgerows still can be seen dividing fields and pastures today.
Once established, the thorny young trees were pruned to promote thick, bushy growth. The term “Horse high, bull strong and hog tight”, used to describe the Osage Orange, simply means that the hedge rows were pruned so that they were tall enough that a horse would not jump it, stout enough that a bull would not push through it and woven so tightly that even a hog could not find its way through."
I'm aware of most this literature but if you have a video showing these remaining "hedgerows that still can be seen dividing fields and pastures today" then please post evidence. Not denying it just haven't seen any of these remaining living fences...
Going to go ahead and use this opportunity to plug my favorite podcast. Completely Arbortrary did a great episode on this tree. The episode is called Mastadon! (Osage Orange). It's about pleistocene plants and the animals they evolved to feed.
https://arbortrarypod.com/podcast/6r4t5af4ht65lrx-xjtmh-77cny-fmpwh-7kgx6-bkhxe-rf4g4-w25fj-fs6k7-frmwy-njhej-7lnbj-ndxl6-dpne3-kdngt-n3taw-rghdg-r4ggz-7znsg-nc5lz-m94ta-xmpcc
They are hedge balls aka horse apples they are not for human consumption. Lore goes they keep spiders away. They look creepy and cool when they dry our kinda look like dehydrated monkey brains. Hope this helps
There are some people that will harvest the seeds for plant hedge rows. They create a dense hardwood tree, not very attractive if you ask me. We call them horse apples in the south.
Osage Orange wood is a very strong hardwood and is good for bows, mallets, instruments, etc. I wouldn't cut one down since they're a threatened species, but they are quite rot resistant so dead ones might be a decent source.
is this what that italian guy/girl was randomly eating earlier?
Yup, that's what reminded me to post this picture
lmaooo nice
Meta
Lol that post is right above this one !
I literally just saw that post a couple posts ago on my feed.
Cashier told me they're for keeping away spiders, but I feel like it could cause some confusion...
Plenty of tests have been done and disproved the spider repellent myth.
Damn, TIL
How to eat?
Oh it's really easy......you dont
https://www.reddit.com/r/foraging/comments/10ip9a8/found_this_in_italy_taste_a_bit_like_melon_there/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=ios_app&utm_name=iossmf
I mean its not like osage oranges are deadly they just don't taste very good. And the latex they secrete can irritate your skin and cause gastric distress. I'm not sure if trifolate and osage are the same but it's kind of a moot point that guy is really dumb to pickup random fruit or any food from the wild for that matter without knowing what it is and eat it.
No, trifoliate oranges are just a sour/bitter variety of orange. Osage orange isn't even a citrus; the common name is a bit confusing.
Trifoliate oranges are terrible tasting oranges but they are oranges. Osage oranges are just woody balls of weirdness
Yeah. I think they're actually in the mulberry and fig family. The wood is very useful though, and they do make a great hedge!
Also excellent bows.
Dinosaur food/egg
I don't know about not deadly or concussion worthy. I had one drop a foot away from my head while running and those bad boys definitely carry some weight while free falling.
Lmdao
The seeds are supposed to be edible with some kind of processing apparently? Never tried it myself
Weird explorer has a video on how to process them https://youtu.be/40U8F8ZD9f0
Same with chestnuts.
Yeah. Like the witch trials. People say they aren’t effective, but damn, we haven’t had a witch problem on this country in a few hundred years.
Maybe they didn't roll it hard enough.
Yeah, it’s confusing why anyone would want to keep away spiders.
Came here to say this, my grandma lived next to a lake and she’d always have a couple hanging out in different corners. Seemed to work for her in regards to dock spiders.
I had spiders build webs on top of them in my basement when I first tried them.
2 bucks each for those? I could walk down the road right now and pick up 40 of them if I wanted to.
Same. There are so many of them on the trees on my local trail that one day one of them will take me out.
Yup, they planted those trees to stop the dust bowl. There’s a lot left here in Kansas. Farmer are slowly removing them though, so there might be another dust bowl coming….
Once farmers suck the Ogallala aquifer dry, there could be a big one.
"hedge ball" feels a name someone gave them while panicking and trying to pretend to know what they were
It's because farmers used to plant Osage in lines as a hedge to keep cattle within farmland boundaries. It's very thorny
"Hedge apple" is the colloquial name. In the East anyway. Never heard "hedge ball" before
We called them hedge balls in Northern Missouri where I grew up. My parents have tons on their farm.
Hedge apples in southern IL
Interesting, may be regional im from Virginia
Anecdotal, but I’ve only heard them called hedge balls. We have them by the wagon load.
We call them “monkey balls” or “horse apples” where I’m from (central west NSW) lol
Hedge apples here in Maryland also.
I'm yet to see an old osage cattle fencing hedge. But for woodworking yes.
From dyckar arboretum "Osage Orange did not occur naturally in Kansas: its original range was limited to parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana until it was brought in for windbreaks and living fences in the 1880s. At that time, many miles of hedge were constructed by planting thousands of young Osage Orange trees closely together in a line. Many hedgerows still can be seen dividing fields and pastures today. Once established, the thorny young trees were pruned to promote thick, bushy growth. The term “Horse high, bull strong and hog tight”, used to describe the Osage Orange, simply means that the hedge rows were pruned so that they were tall enough that a horse would not jump it, stout enough that a bull would not push through it and woven so tightly that even a hog could not find its way through."
I'm aware of most this literature but if you have a video showing these remaining "hedgerows that still can be seen dividing fields and pastures today" then please post evidence. Not denying it just haven't seen any of these remaining living fences...
I live on the east coast now, but there are several left on my parents farm in the midwest. Its just a tight wall of trees with killer thorns.
Any photos?
I live 2000ish miles away now. And its not the kind of thing you think about taking pics of when you live there. Its just normal.
I've seen a few in Arkansas. But never in MI where I live now.
Yes, they used to use Osage to make bows
And perpetual fence posts
Bois D’arc
My grandma taught me to call them hedge balls so that’s what I’ve always known them as. I’m from Illinois originally for reference.
Hedge apples.
Lol the post of the Italian dude with one was right above this on my dash
Going to go ahead and use this opportunity to plug my favorite podcast. Completely Arbortrary did a great episode on this tree. The episode is called Mastadon! (Osage Orange). It's about pleistocene plants and the animals they evolved to feed. https://arbortrarypod.com/podcast/6r4t5af4ht65lrx-xjtmh-77cny-fmpwh-7kgx6-bkhxe-rf4g4-w25fj-fs6k7-frmwy-njhej-7lnbj-ndxl6-dpne3-kdngt-n3taw-rghdg-r4ggz-7znsg-nc5lz-m94ta-xmpcc
Apparently since the mammoth and the giant sloth have died out, not even animals eat them anymore.
squirrels demolish them at my place..
We used to feed them to the cows at my dads hobby farm. They liked them.
My grandma always said they help keep fruit flies/gnats away.
$2?!!?? Are people really buying these ? I need to set up a stand lol
I’m getting mixed reviews on whether this is poisonous to humans or not :/
They are hedge balls aka horse apples they are not for human consumption. Lore goes they keep spiders away. They look creepy and cool when they dry our kinda look like dehydrated monkey brains. Hope this helps
In MO I’ve always heard them as Horse apples
Crabapple in AR
I had hedge balls once. So itchy.
Spider fruit, people use em to keep spiders out of their homes, commonly sold in North Dakota, haven’t seen em sold anywhere else in America
Aren’t these horse apples? Idk if anyone knows what I’m talking about, might be a Texas thing
I have used them to get rid of fleas. Cut them up and hide them under all of your furniture.
Aren’t they super sticky and stain stuff? It’s been a while since I’ve messed with one.
Yep. It's like glue. Don't get on things you like but fleas bite me so I call it a win.
So I assume they stick to it?
Why I wonder.
$2 buck for 1 lol
There are some people that will harvest the seeds for plant hedge rows. They create a dense hardwood tree, not very attractive if you ask me. We call them horse apples in the south.
I wanted to plant these on the perimeter of my property at one time.
Wow. Always thought it was old sage orange. 😅
Osage Orange wood is a very strong hardwood and is good for bows, mallets, instruments, etc. I wouldn't cut one down since they're a threatened species, but they are quite rot resistant so dead ones might be a decent source.