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Bois D'arc

Maclura pomifera (Rafin. ex Sarg.) Schneid.

Associations

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In Great Britain and/or Ireland:
Foodplant / feeds on
gregarious, occasionally stromatic, covered, then piercing pycnidium of Phomopsis coelomycetous anamorph of Phomopsis exul feeds on twig of Maclura pomifera

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Comments

provided by eFloras
In Pakistan, it is reported to be cultivated in gardens at Quetta, Peshawar, Wah and Lehtrar (near Rawalpindi), Abbotabad, Lahore etc. by R.R. Stewart (l.c. 194), but no specimens have been seen by the author.
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Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA
bibliographic citation
Flora of Pakistan Vol. 0: 40 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
source
Flora of Pakistan @ eFloras.org
editor
S. I. Ali & M. Qaiser
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eFloras.org
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Comments

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Maclura pomifera is native to southwestern Arkansas, southeastern Oklahoma, and Texas; it is introduced and naturalized elsewhere in the United States. Collections in California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and Washington appear to represent isolated escapes.

Maclura pomifera has been widely used in fencerows on farms and along roadways in the midwest and eastern states as windbreaks and wildlife shelter.

The Comanches used Maclura pomifera as an eye medication (D. E. Moerman 1986).

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Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA
bibliographic citation
Flora of North America Vol. 3 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
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Flora of North America @ eFloras.org
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Flora of North America Editorial Committee
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Description

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Tree, or rarely a large shrub, upto 15 (-20) m tall. Trunk 2.5-3 m in circumference with longitudinally deep fissured dark orange-brown bark. Young shoots olive green, pubescent to glabrous with 10-25 nun long axillary spines, rarely spineless. leaves with (1.5-) 2.5 an long petiole; lamina ovate to lanceolate-oblong, 5-12 (-16) cm long, (2-) 3-8 (-10) cm broad, entire, 5-costate from the cuneate to ± cordate base, shining above, finely pubescent to eventually glabrescent, apex acute-acuminate or rarely obtuse; stipules subulate, c. 2.5-3.5 mm long, acuminate, brownish-membranous, caducous. Male inflorescence a subglobose, 2.5-3.5 cm long, pseudoracemose clusters on slender, 1-2 cm long peduncles. Male flowers: pedicels 2-5 mm long, filiform; sepals basally connate, oval-oblong, c. 1.5 mm long, lanate hairy outside; staminal filaments longer than sepals with oval, exserted anthers. Female inflorescence a dense, axillary, subsessile to short peduncled globose head, c. 2 cm in diameter. Female flowers: subsessile; sepals united at the base, oblong c. 4 mm long, thick, lanate hairy at the apex; ovary with filiform, c. 20-25 mm long, hairy styles. Fruit large, sub-globose, 10-15 cm in diameter, orange-like but wrinkled and rough, yellowish-green. Seeds c. 1 cm long.
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cc-by-nc-sa-3.0
copyright
Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA
bibliographic citation
Flora of Pakistan Vol. 0: 40 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
source
Flora of Pakistan @ eFloras.org
editor
S. I. Ali & M. Qaiser
project
eFloras.org
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eFloras

Description

provided by eFloras
Trees , to 20 m. Bark dark orange-brown, shallowly furrowed, ridges flat, often peeling into long, thin strips. Branchlets greenish yellow, becoming orange-brown; thorns stout, straight, to 1.5 cm, usually lateral to spur branch, spur branches often paired. Buds often paired, larger one red-brown, globose, 1.5-2 mm; scales ciliate; leaf scars half round, bundle scars arranged in oval. Leaves: stipules lanceolate, 1.5-2 mm, pubescent and long-ciliate; petiole 1-2.5 cm, pubescent. Leaf blade 4-12 × 2-6 cm, base rounded, apex acuminate; surfaces abaxially pale, glabrate, midrib and veins pubescent, adaxially lustrous, glabrous, midrib somewhat pubescent. Staminate inflorescences clustered on lateral spur branches; peduncle 1-1.5 cm, pubescent; heads globose or cylindric, 1.3-2.3 cm; pedicels 2-10 mm, glabrate. Pistillate inflorescences: peduncle 2-2.5 mm, glabrous or pubescent; heads globose, sessile on obconic receptacle, to 1.5 cm diam. Staminate flowers: sepals distinct, yellow-green, ca. 1 mm, apex acute, pubescent; filaments ca. 2 mm, closely appressed to sepals, flattened. Pistillate flowers: sepals green, obovate, 3 mm, enclosing and closely appressed to ovary, hoodlike, ciliate near tip; ovary ovoid, compressed, ca. 1 mm; style base green, ca. 3 mm, branches 4-6 mm, glabrous; stigma yellowish, papillose. Syncarps yellow-green to green, spheric, surface irregular, exuding milky sap when broken, peduncle short, glabrous or pubescent; achenes completely covered by accescent, thickened calyx lobes and deeply embedded in receptacle. Seeds cream colored, oval to oblong, 8-12 × 5-6 mm, base truncate or rounded with 1-3 minute points, margins with narrow groove, apex rounded, mucronate; surfaces minutely striated or pitted.
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Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA
bibliographic citation
Flora of North America Vol. 3 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
source
Flora of North America @ eFloras.org
editor
Flora of North America Editorial Committee
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Distribution

provided by eFloras
Distribution: A native of N. America, introduced and cultivated in many parts of the world.
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cc-by-nc-sa-3.0
copyright
Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA
bibliographic citation
Flora of Pakistan Vol. 0: 40 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
source
Flora of Pakistan @ eFloras.org
editor
S. I. Ali & M. Qaiser
project
eFloras.org
original
visit source
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eFloras

Distribution

provided by eFloras
Ala., Ark., Conn., Del., D.C., Fla., Ga., Ill., Ind., Iowa, Kans., Ky., La., Md., Mass., Mich., Miss., Mo., Nebr., N.J., N.Mex., N.Y., N.C., Ohio, Okla., Pa., R.I., S.C., S.Dak., Tenn., Tex., Va., W.Va., Wis.
license
cc-by-nc-sa-3.0
copyright
Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA
bibliographic citation
Flora of North America Vol. 3 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
source
Flora of North America @ eFloras.org
editor
Flora of North America Editorial Committee
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eFloras.org
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Flower/Fruit

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Fl. Per.: May-July.
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copyright
Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA
bibliographic citation
Flora of Pakistan Vol. 0: 40 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
source
Flora of Pakistan @ eFloras.org
editor
S. I. Ali & M. Qaiser
project
eFloras.org
original
visit source
partner site
eFloras

Flowering/Fruiting

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Flowering spring.
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Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA
bibliographic citation
Flora of North America Vol. 3 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
source
Flora of North America @ eFloras.org
editor
Flora of North America Editorial Committee
project
eFloras.org
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Habitat

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Thickets; 0-1500m.
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Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA
bibliographic citation
Flora of North America Vol. 3 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
source
Flora of North America @ eFloras.org
editor
Flora of North America Editorial Committee
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eFloras.org
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Synonym

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Ioxylon pomiferum Rafinesque, Amer. Monthly Mag. & Crit. Rev. 2: 118. 1817; I. aurantiacum (Nuttall) Rafinesque; Maclura aurantiaca Nuttall
license
cc-by-nc-sa-3.0
copyright
Missouri Botanical Garden, 4344 Shaw Boulevard, St. Louis, MO, 63110 USA
bibliographic citation
Flora of North America Vol. 3 in eFloras.org, Missouri Botanical Garden. Accessed Nov 12, 2008.
source
Flora of North America @ eFloras.org
editor
Flora of North America Editorial Committee
project
eFloras.org
original
visit source
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eFloras

Common Names

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
osage-orange
hedge-apple
bois d'arc
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bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Description

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info for the terms: fruit, seed, tree

Osage-orange is a small, native, deciduous tree that averages 30 feet (9
m) in height. It has a short trunk and rounded crown. Shade-killed
lower branches remain on the tree for years, forming a dense thicket.
Branches growing in full sun have sharp, stout thorns 0.5 to 1 inch
(1.3-2.5 cm) long. Osage-orange has a large, round multiple fruit
composed of many fleshy calyces, each containing one seed. Osage-orange
generally has a well-developed taproot; a tree in Oklahoma had roots
more than 27 feet (8.2 m) deep. On shallow soils, roots spread
laterally [4,7,34].
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Distribution

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
Osage-orange is native to a narrow belt in eastern Texas, southeastern
Oklahoma, southwestern Arkansas, and the extreme northwest corner of
Louisiana. This belt includes portions of the Blackland Prairies, Chiso
Mountains, and the Red River drainage [4]. Osage-orange has been
introduced into most of the conterminous United States and has become
naturalized throughout much of the eastern United States and the central
Great Plains [4,8,13,28,33,35].
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cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Fire Ecology

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info for the terms: fire regime, top-kill

Information about the fire ecology of osage-orange is lacking in the
literature. Osage-orange probably survives top-kill by fire.

FIRE REGIMES :
Find fire regime information for the plant communities in which this
species may occur by entering the species name in the FEIS home page under
"Find FIRE REGIMES".
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Fire Management Considerations

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
The dead, persistent, lower branches of osage-orange may promote crown
fires.
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cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Growth Form (according to Raunkiær Life-form classification)

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More info on this topic.

More info for the term: phanerophyte

Phanerophyte
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cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Habitat characteristics

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
Osage-orange grows best in areas that receive 25 to 40 inches (640-1,020
mm) precipitation a year but tolerates a minimum of 15 inches (380 mm).
It is sensitive to cold and succumbs to winter-kill in the northern
Great Plains [4,34].

Osage-orange grows on a variety of soils but does best on rich, moist,
well-drained bottomlands. It occurs on alkaline soils, shallow soils
overlaying limestone, clayey soils, and sandy soils [4,26,35]. It can
occur on bottomlands which are seasonally flooded [4].
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Habitat: Cover Types

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More info on this topic.

This species is known to occur in association with the following cover types (as classified by the Society of American Foresters):

93 Sugarberry - American elm - green ash
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Habitat: Ecosystem

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More info on this topic.

This species is known to occur in the following ecosystem types (as named by the U.S. Forest Service in their Forest and Range Ecosystem [FRES] Type classification):

FRES13 Loblolly - shortleaf pine
FRES14 Oak - pine
FRES15 Oak - hickory
FRES16 Oak - gum - cypress
FRES17 Elm - ash - cottonwood
FRES18 Maple - beech - birch
FRES38 Plains grasslands
FRES39 Prairie
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Habitat: Plant Associations

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More info on this topic.

This species is known to occur in association with the following plant community types (as classified by Küchler 1964):

More info for the term: forest

K098 Northern floodplain forest
K100 Oak - hickory forest
K111 Oak - hickory - pine forest
K113 Southern floodplain forest
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Immediate Effect of Fire

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info for the terms: fire severity, severity

Small-diameter osage-orange are probably top-killed by most fires.
Depending on fire severity and root depth, they may be completely
killed. Larger individuals may survive.
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Importance to Livestock and Wildlife

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info for the terms: cover, fruit, tree

Osage-orange provides shelter and cover for wildlife. Small mammals and
birds use the thorny tree for cover. The bitter-tasting, fleshy fruit
is generally not eaten, but some animals including squirrel, fox, red
crossbill, and northern bobwhite occasionally eat the seeds
[4,14,24,34]. Seedlings and sprouts are browsed occasionally [4].
Downy woodpeckers use osage-orange as forage sites [10].
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Key Plant Community Associations

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info for the term: forest

Native and naturalized populations of osage-orange occur in rich
bottomland forests and on sandy terraces. On the Trinity River
floodplain in Texas, mostly small (less than 8-inch [20 cm] diameter)
osage-orange occurs in bottomland forests dominated by cedar elm (Ulmus
crassifolia), sugarberry (Celtis laevigata), green ash (Fraxinus
pennsylvanica), and western soapberry (Sapindus soponaria var.
drummondii) [18]. In Iowa, osage-orange occurs in a honey-locust
(Gleditsia triacanthos)-black locust (Robinia psuedoacacia)-boxelder
(Acer negundo)-elm (Ulmus spp.) forest [15]. On lower terraces of Salt
Creek in Illinois, osage-orange occurs in a bur oak (Quercus
macrocarpa)-hackberrry (Celtis occidentalis) forest [16]. Osage-orange
is also associated with white oak (Quercus alba), white ash (Fraxinus
americana), and red mulberry (Morus rubra) [4].

In Tennessee, Kentucky, and Alabama, osage-orange occurs with eastern
redcedar (Juniperus virginiana), black walnut (Juglans nigra), hickory
(Carya spp.), and elm [4].

Osage-orange that has escaped cultivation often occurs as thickets along
fencerows and ditches, in ravines, and in overgrazed pastures. It
commonly occurs with honey-locust in disturbed areas [4].
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Life Form

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info for the term: tree

Tree
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Management considerations

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
Osage-orange is planted in shelterbelts and hedgerows of the Great
Plains. It is planted alone or in a row adjacent to a row of evergreens
or taller hardwoods [34]. Osage-orange hedges are maintained as fences
by pruning [24]. While a favorite of the past, osage-orange hedgerows
are now replaced with species that provide more benefit to wildlife
[14]. Osage-orange is recommended for planting on deep, moist,
permeable soils and medium to shallow upland silty-clayey loams, sandy
loams, and loamy sands. It is not recommended for sandhills or wet,
poorly drained soils [21].

Osage-orange hedges are often clearcut for posts. Winter cuttings
produce the most vigorous stump sprouts which regenerate the hedge [27].
Three to five years after clearcutting, the new sprout stands should be
thinned to 240 stems per 100 meters. The sprouts are susceptible to
fire and grazing [4].

Osage-orange is generally resistant to disease and insects; the only
serious affliction is cotton root rot (Phymatotrichum omnivorum) [4,22].
Eastern mistletoe (Phoradendron serotinum) occasionally parasitizes
osage-orange [8].

Hamel [9] describes herbicide application rates, methods, and seasons
for osage-orange control. Triclopyr or picloram, applied with a
chainsaw girdling treatment, are effective against osage-orange [17].
Launchbaugh and Owensby [12] describe preferred osage-orange herbicide
control methods for Kansas.
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Nutritional Value

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info for the term: fruit

The fleshy fruit of osage-orange is more than 80 percent digestible [25].
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Occurrence in North America

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AL AR CA CO CT DE FL GA IL IN
IA KS KY LA ME MD MA MI MS MO
NE NH NJ NY NC OH OK OR PA RI
SC SD TN TX UT VT VA WA WV
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Other uses and values

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info for the term: fruit

Early settlers of the Great Plains used osage-orange for hedgerows. The
diffuse, thorny branches form impenetrable hedges which were used to
fence in livestock [24].

Osage-orange wood extractives are used for food processing, pesticide
manufacturing, and dye making. The Osage Indians used the wood for dye
and bows. The strong-smelling fruit repels cockroaches [24].

Osage-orange is planted as an ornamental. There is an unusual thornless
male form which is clonally propagated [19].
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Palatability

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info for the term: fruit

Osage-orange fruit and browse are generally not palatable [4,33,34].
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Phenology

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More info on this topic.

More info for the term: fruit

Osage-orange generally flowers from April to June and the fruit ripens
from September to October [2,4]. It flowers in mid-May in Kansas and
Nebraska [28].
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Plant Response to Fire

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
Osage-orange probably sprouts if top-killed by fire.
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Post-fire Regeneration

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
Tree with adventitious-bud root crown/soboliferous species root sucker
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Regeneration Processes

provided by Fire Effects Information System Plants
More info for the terms: dioecious, peat, seed

Osage-orange reproduces vegetatively and by seed. It is dioecious.
Female trees begin producing seeds at age 10 but are most productive
from age 25 to 65. Good seed crops are produced nearly every year.
Seeds are disseminated by animals, gravity, and water. Seeds have a
slight dormancy which is overcome by soaking in water for 2 days or
stratifying in sand or peat for 30 days. Seed germination requires
exposed mineral soil and full light. At 7 years of age, osage-orange is
about 8 feet (2.4 m) tall with a crown spread of about 6 feet (1.8 m)
[2,4,40].

Seed collection, cleaning, storage, and planting techniques are
described [2,34].

Osage-orange sprouts vigorously from the stump [4,34]. Godfrey [7]
suggested that it also sprouts from the roots.
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Regional Distribution in the Western United States

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More info on this topic.

This species can be found in the following regions of the western United States (according to the Bureau of Land Management classification of Physiographic Regions of the western United States):

14 Great Plains
license
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bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Successional Status

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More info on this topic.

More info for the terms: forest, hardwood

The shade tolerance of osage-orange is not well defined. It has been
listed as intermediate in tolerance [32] and intolerant [4].
Osage-orange grows in the subcanopy of bottomland forests [4,16], but it
also invades overgrazed pastures and other open, disturbed sites with
eroding soil. Osage-orange regenerates naturally on sunny sites but
grows when planted in dense hedges [4].

Osage-orange in remnant bottomland hardwood forests is negatively
associated with fragment size. In other words, the smaller the area of
remnant forest, the more likely that osage-orange will occur there.
Rudis [23] suggested that fragmentation may promote and accelerate the
establishment of pioneer species and species adapted to disturbance.
license
cc-publicdomain
bibliographic citation
Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Taxonomy

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The currently accepted scientific name for osage-orange is Maclura
pomifera (Raf.) Schneid. (Moraceae) [8,13,28]. There are no currently
accepted infrataxa.
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Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Value for rehabilitation of disturbed sites

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More info for the term: reclamation

Osage-orange is used for soil stabilization and strip mine reclamation
[3,4,32]. It is adapted to most surface mine conditions but does better
in less acidic, well-drained mine soils. It has a lower soil pH limit
of 4.5. Osage-orange had a 33 percent survival rate 30 years after
planting on mine soils in Illinois and Indiana, and a 39 percent
survival rate after 30 years on mine soils in Ohio [32]. Osage-orange
is sensitive to soil compaction [4].
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Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Wood Products Value

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Osage-orange wood is hard, durable, and resistant to decay. It is
primarily used for fence posts [4,24].
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Carey, Jennifer H. 1994. Liriodendron tulipifera.In: Fire Effects Information System, [Online]. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory (Producer). Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/database/feis/

Associated Forest Cover

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Osage-orange is not included in any of the forest types recognized by the Society of American Foresters (13). In moist, well-drained minor bottom lands in northwestern Louisiana and nearby parts of Oklahoma, Arkansas, and Texas, it is found with white oak Quercus alba), hickories (Carya spp.), white ash (Fraxinus americana), and red mulberry (Morus rubra) (37). In Nebraska and Kansas, it invades overgrazed pastures, accompanied by honeylocust (Gleditsia triacanthos) and is succeeded by black walnut (Juglans nigra), oaks Quercus spp.), hackberry (Celtis spp.), hickories, and elms (Ulmus spp.) (18). Among the most common associates on lime stone- derived soils in middle Tennessee and neighboring portions of Kentucky and Alabama are eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginiana), black walnut, hickories, and elms (45).

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Climate

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Within the natural range of Osage-orange, average annual temperature ranges from about 18° to 21° C (65° to 70° F), July temperature averages 27° C (80° F) and January temperature ranges from 6° to 7° C (43° to 45° F) with an extreme of -23° C (-10° F). The frost-free period averages 240 days. Average annual precipitation ranges from 1020 to 1140 min (40 to 45 in), and April to September rainfall from 430 to 630 min (17 to 25 in).

Osage-orange is hardy as far north as Massachusetts but succumbs to winter-kill in northeastern Colorado and the northern parts of Nebraska, Iowa, and Illinois (34,36).

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Damaging Agents

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Although Osage-orange is one of the healthiest tree species in North America, it is attacked by some parasites. Cotton root rot, caused by Phymatotrichum omnivorum, attacks Osage-orange and most other windbreak species in Texas, Oklahoma, and Arizona (59). Losses are greatest in plantings on dry soil where rainfall is scant. Cotton root rot is the only serious disease.

Two species of mistletoe, Phoradendron serotinum and P. tomentosum, grow in the branches and cause witches' brooms. Osage-orange ornamentals in the Northeast have occasionally succumbed to Verticilliurn wilt, caused by Verticillium albo-atrum. Leafspot diseases are caused by Ovularia maclurae, Phyllosticta maclurae, Sporodesmium maclurae, Septoria angustissima, Cercospora maclurae, and Cerotelium fici. Seedlings in a Nebraska nursery have been killed by damping-off and root rot caused by Phythium ultimum and Rhizoctonia solani (21). Phellinus ribis attacks stemwood exposed in wounds. Poria ferruginosa and P. punctata are the only two wood-destroying basidiomycetes reported on Osage-orange; they occur only on dead wood, mainly in tropical and subtropical parts of the western hemisphere (21). Maclura mosaic virus and cucumber mosaic virus have been identified in leaf tissue of Osage-orange in Yugoslavia (35).

Osage-orange trees are attacked by at least four stem borers: the mulberry borers (Doraschema wildii and D. alternatum) (4), the painted hickory borer (Megacyllene caryae), and the red-shouldered hickory borer (Xylobiops basilaris) (8). The twigs are parasitized by several scale insects including the European fruit lecanium (Parthenolecanium corni), the walnut scale (Quadraspidiotus juglansregiae) the cottony maple scale (Pulvinaria innumerabilis) the terrapin scale (Mesolecanium nigrofasciatum), and the San Jose scale (Quadraspidiotus perniciosus) (25,46). The fruit-tree leafroller (Archips argyrospilus) feeds on opening buds and unfolding leaves.

Osage-orange is attacked by, but is not a principal host of, the fall webworm (Hyphantria cunea) (55), an Eriophyid mite, Tegolophus spongiosus (51), and the fourspotted spider mite, Tetranychus canadensis (4).

Osage-orange trees and several other species in 1 to 5-year-old plantations on old fields in the prairie region of Illinois were partially or completely girdled by mice. Severity of damage was greatest where weeds were most abundant (26).

Windbreaks on the Great Plains, unless given cultivation during their early years, are invaded by herbaceous vegetation, become sod bound, and are permanently damaged (33,38,39). This vegetation may harbor rodents. Grazing is not satisfactory for herbage control; multiple-row windbreaks should be fenced to exclude livestock.

Osage-orange sustained less damage by insects, diseases, drought, hail, and glaze than any other species planted in the Prairie States Forestry Project. Along with bur oak (Quercus macrocarpa) it survived better than any other deciduous species on uplands of the Southern Plains (7,38).

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Flowering and Fruiting

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Osage-orange is dioecious. The simple, green, four-part flowers appear soon after the leaves on the same spurs, opening from April through June, and are wind pollinated. Male flowers are long peduncled axillary racemes 2.5 to 3.8 cm (1 to 1.5 in) long on the terminal leaf spur of the previous season; female flowers are in dense globose heads, axillary to the leaves, about 2.5 cm (1 in) in diameter (2). The female flower in ripening becomes very fleshy, forming a large multiple fruit or syncarp composed of 1-seeded drupelets. The fruit ripens from September through October. The ripe fruit, 7.6 to 15 ern (3 to 6 in) in diameter, yellowish-green, resembles an orange, often weighing more than a kilogram (2.2 lb). Fruits average 23/dkl (80 to the bu) (53). When bruised, the fruit exudes a bitter milky juice which may cause a skin rash and which will blacken the fruit on drying.

Female trees often produce abundant fruit when no male trees exist nearby, but such fruit contains no seeds.

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Genetics

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There is no known literature on the genetics of Osage-orange, and no information on geographic races is available. A thornless cultivar, Maclura pomifera var. inermis (André) Schneid., can be propagated by cuttings or scions taken from high in the crowns of old trees, where the twigs are thornless (30,31). The only known hybrid, x Macludrania hybrida André, is an intergeneric cross: x Macludrania = Cudrania x Maclura. Cudrania tricuspidata (Carr.) Bureau is a spiny shrub or small tree, native to China, Japan, and Korea. The Maclura parent is variety inermis. The hybrid is a small tree with yellowish furrowed bark and short, woody spines (2,41). Some authorities believe that the tropical dye-wood, fustic & ChIorophora tinctoria (L.) Gaud.é belongs in the genus Maclura; however, the majority opinion is that there is only one species of Osage-orange (28).

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Growth and Yield

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Osage-orange is a small tree or large shrub averaging 9 m (30 ft) in height at maturity. Isolated trees on good sites may reach heights of as much as 21 m (70 ft); crowded trees usually do not grow so tall. In windbreak plantings on the Great Plains, Osage-orange grew 6 m (20 ft) tall on average sites during a 20-year period; on some sites it grew 12 m (40 ft) tall (39).

Branchlets growing in full sunlight bear sharp, stout thorns. Slow-growing twigs in the shaded portions of the crown of mature trees are thornless. The thorns, 1.3 to 2.5 cm (0.5 to 1 in) long, are modified twigs. They form in leaf axils on 1-year-old twigs. Shade-killed lower branches remain on the tree many years. Regional estimates, based on the 19641966 Forest Surveys, indicated virtually no Osage-orange of commercial size and quality on forest land in Oklahoma, Texas, and Louisiana. There are two reasons for this: the species usually grows on nonforest land, and merchantability standards for forest trees do not apply to Osage-orange. Mature trees have short, curved boles and low, wide, deliquescent crowns. Even in closed stands on good sites, less than half the stems contain a straight log, 3 m (10 ft) long, sound and free of shake.

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Reaction to Competition

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Osage-orange is tolerant according to some authors (6,37) and very intolerant according to others (3). Overall, it is most accurately classed as intolerant of shade. The occurrence and circumstances of natural regeneration suggest intolerance, but the growth of planted Osage-orange in hedges and shelterbelts, under strong competition, indicates tolerance. How vigorously and at how advanced an age the species responds to release has not been deter-mined. Severe competition does not prevent abundant seed production. Osage-orange sprouts vigorously, even following cutting of interior rows in windbreaks.

No literature on the silviculture of naturally regenerated forest stands of Osage-orange is known.

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Rooting Habit

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Osage-orange is characteristically deep rooted, but because it has been planted so widely, the species is usually off-site, where its rooting habit is variable. When the tree grows on shallow, fertile soils over limestone, the lateral rootspread is tremendous (32).

Excavation of root systems in 7-year-old or older shelterbelts revealed a lateral radius of 4.3 m (14 ft) and a depth of more than 8.2 m (27 ft) for Osage-orange near Goodwell, OK (9). The soil was Richfield silt loam. Most of the lateral roots were in the uppermost 0.3 m (1 ft) of soil. Excavations in Nebraska revealed a lateral radius of 2.1 m (7 ft) and a depth of 1.5 m (5 ft) for 3-year-old Osage-orange in Wabash silt loam; for 23-year-old Osage-orange in Sogn silty clay loam, lateral radius was 4.9 m (16 ft) and depth was 2.4 m (8 ft) (47). At both ages, there was a well-developed taproot, and most of the long laterals originated within the first 0.3 m (I ft) of soil. At 3 years, most of the long laterals were within the first 0.6 m (2 ft) of soil; at 23 years, laterals were as abundant in the eighth as in the first foot of soil.

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Seed Production and Dissemination

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Female trees bear good seed crops nearly every year, beginning about the 10th year. Commercial seed-bearing age is optimum from 25 to 65 years, and 75 to 100 years may be the maximum (53). Germinative capacity averages 58 percent. Seeds are nearly I cm (0.4 in) in length. The number of clean seeds ranges from 15,400 to 35,300, averaging 30,900/kg (7,000 to 16,000, averaging 14,000/lb). Livestock, wild mammals, and birds feed on the fruit and disseminate the seed. The seeds have a slight dormancy that is easily overcome by soaking in water for 48 hours or by stratifying in sand or peat for 30 days. Fruit stored over winter in piles outdoors is easily cleaned in the spring, and the seed germinates promptly. Viability can be maintained for at least 3 years by storing cleaned, air-dried seeds in sealed containers at 5° C (41° F) (56). Recommended sowing depth is about 6 to 13 min (0.25 to 0.5 in); soil should be firmed.

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Seedling Development

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Germination is epigeal. Natural regeneration apparently requires exposed mineral soil and full light. A study of survival and growth in the Prairie States Forestry Project windbreaks indicated average survival of Osage-orange at age 7 years to be 68 percent, ranking seventh of 16 "shrubs"; total height was 2.4 m (8 ft), ranking fifth of 16; and crown spread was 1.8 m (6 ft). Osage-orange was usually planted in the shrub (outer) rows and sometimes in the tree (inner) rows. It grows too fast, however, to be considered a shrub and often overtops slower growing conifers (33).

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Special Uses

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Osage-orange has been planted in great numbers, first as a field hedge, before barbed wire became available, secondly as a windbreak and component of shelterbelts, and thirdly to stabilize soils and control erosion.

The single-row field hedge proved to be a valuable windbreak on the prairie; evidence of this was the raised ground level under 15-year-old hedges, caused by accumulation of windborne soil material. Hedges around every quarter-section were common, especially in areas of deep sand (20,38). These hedges were a source of durable posts. Prairie farmers customarily clearcut hedges on a 10- to 16-year cycle, obtaining about 2,500 fence posts per kilometer (4,000 per mi) of single-row hedge. The slash was piled over the stumps to protect the new sprouts from browsing livestock. Pole-sized and larger Osage-orange trees are practically immune to browsing, but seedlings and tender sprouts are highly susceptible. Recommended practice is to thin the new sprout stands to 240 vigorous stems per 100 m (73/100 ft), 3 to 5 years after the clearcut, and to protect the sprouts from fire. If inadvertently burned, the sprouts should be cut back immediately to encourage new, vigorous growth (20).

Osage-orange heartwood is the most decay-resistant of all North American timbers and is immune to termites. The outer layer of sapwood is very thin; consequently, even small-diameter stems give long service as stakes and posts (40,43). About 3 million posts were sold annually in Kansas during the early 1970's. The branch wood was used by the Osage Indians for making bows and is still recommended by some archers today.

The chemical properties of the fruit, seed, roots, bark, and wood may be more important than the structural qualities of the wood. A number of extractives have been identified by researchers, but they have not yet been employed by industry (11,12,23, 24,44,58). Numerous organic compounds have also been obtained from various parts of the tree (16,44,57). An antifungal agent and a nontoxic antibiotic useful as a food preservative have been extracted from the heartwood (5,24).

Osage-orange in prairie regions provides valuable cover and nesting sites for quail, pheasant, other birds, and animals (20,33), but the bitter-tasting fruit is little eaten by wildlife. Reports that fruit causes the death of livestock have been proven wrong by feeding experiments in several States.

Osage-orange has been successfully used in strip mine reclamation. Its ease of planting, tolerance of alkaline soil, and resistance to drought are desirable qualities (1,14,29). These qualities plus growth, long life, and resistance to injury by ice, wind, insects, and diseases make Osage-orange a valued landscape plant (15,30,31).

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Vegetative Reproduction

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Osage-orange may be vegetatively propagated using root cuttings or with greenwood cuttings under glass. To propagate thornless male (nonfruiting) clones for ornamental use, scions or cuttings should be taken only from the mature part of the crown of a tree past the juvenile stage. Perhaps the easiest way to grow selected stock is by grafting chip buds onto nursery-run seedlings and plastic-wrapping the graft area (30,31).

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Brief Summary

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Moraceae -- Mulberry family

J. D. Burton

Osage-orange (Maclura pomifera) produces no sawtimber, pulpwood, or utility poles, but it has been planted in greater numbers than almost any other tree species in North America. Known also as hedge, hedge-apple, bodark, bois-d'arc, bowwood, and naranjo chino, it made agricultural settlement of the prairies possible (though not profitable), led directly to the invention of barbed wire, and then provided most of the posts for the wire that fenced the West. The heartwood, bark, and roots contain many extractives of actual and potential value in food processing, pesticide manufacturing, and dyemaking. Osage-orange is used in landscape design, being picturesque rather than beautiful, and possessing strong form, texture, and character.

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Distribution

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The natural range of Osage-orange is in the Red River drainage of Oklahoma, Texas, and Arkansas; and in the Blackland Prairies, Post Oak Savannas, and Chisos Mountains of Texas (28). According to some authors the original range included most of eastern Oklahoma (34), portions of Missouri (49,54), and perhaps northwestern Louisiana (28,49).

Osage-orange has been planted as a hedge in all the 48 conterminous States and in southeastern Canada. The commercial range includes most of the country east of the Rocky Mountains, south of the Platte River and the Great Lakes, excluding the Appalachian Mountains.


-The native range of osage-orange.


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Maclura pomifera

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Maclura pomifera, commonly known as the Osage orange (/ˈs/ OH-sayj), is a small deciduous tree or large shrub, native to the south-central United States. It typically grows about 8 to 15 metres (30–50 ft) tall. The distinctive fruit, a multiple fruit, is roughly spherical, bumpy, 8 to 15 centimetres (3–6 in) in diameter, and turns bright yellow-green in the fall.[5] The fruits secrete a sticky white latex when cut or damaged. Despite the name "Osage orange",[6] it is not related to the orange.[7] It is a member of the mulberry family, Moraceae.[8] Due to its latex secretions and woody pulp, the fruit is typically not eaten by humans and rarely by foraging animals. Ecologists Daniel H. Janzen and Paul S. Martin proposed in 1982 that the fruit of this species might be an example of what has come to be called an evolutionary anachronism—that is, a fruit coevolved with a large animal seed dispersal partner that is now extinct. This hypothesis is controversial.[9][10]

Maclura pomifera has many names, including mock orange, hedge apple, hedge, horse apple, crab apple, monkey ball, monkey brains and yellow-wood. The name bois d'arc (from French meaning "bow-wood") has also been corrupted into bodark and bodock.[11][12][13]

History

The earliest account of the tree in the English language was given by William Dunbar, a Scottish explorer, in his narrative of a journey made in 1804 from St. Catherine's Landing on the Mississippi River to the Ouachita River.[14] Meriwether Lewis sent some slips and cuttings of the curiosity to President Jefferson in March 1804. According to Lewis's letter, the samples were donated by "Mr. Peter Choteau, who resided the greater portion of his time for many years with the Osage Nation". (Note: This referred to Pierre Chouteau, a fur trader from Saint Louis.) Those cuttings did not survive. In 1810, Bradbury relates that he found two Maclura pomifera trees growing in the garden of Pierre Chouteau, one of the first settlers of Saint Louis, apparently the same person.[14]

American settlers used the Osage orange (i.e. "hedge apple") as a hedge to exclude free-range livestock from vegetable gardens and corn fields. Under severe pruning, the hedge apple sprouted abundant adventitious shoots from its base; as these shoots grew, they became interwoven and formed a dense, thorny barrier hedge. The thorny Osage orange tree was widely naturalized throughout the United States until this usage was superseded by the invention of barbed wire in 1874.[15][6][16][17] By providing a barrier that was "horse-high, bull-strong, and pig-tight", Osage orange hedges provided the "crucial stop-gap measure for westward expansion until the introduction of barbed wire a few decades later".[18]

The trees were named bois d'arc ("bow-wood")[6] by early French settlers who observed the wood being used for war clubs and bow-making by Native Americans.[14] Meriwether Lewis was told that the people of the Osage Nation, "So much ... esteem the wood of this tree for the purpose of making their bows, that they travel many hundreds of miles in quest of it."[19] The trees are also known as "bodark", "bodarc", or "bodock" trees, most likely originating as a corruption of bois d'arc.[6]

The Comanche also used this wood for their bows.[20] They liked the wood because it was strong, flexible and durable,[6] and the bush/tree was common along river bottoms of the Comanchería. Some historians believe that the high value this wood had to Native Americans throughout North America for the making of bows, along with its small natural range, contributed to the great wealth of the Spiroan Mississippian culture that controlled all the land in which these trees grew.[21]

Etymology

The genus Maclura is named in honor of William Maclure[13] (1763–1840), a Scottish-born American geologist. The specific epithet pomifera means "fruit-bearing".[13] The common name Osage derives from Osage Native Americans from whom young plants were first obtained, as told in the notes of Meriwether Lewis in 1804.[17]

Description

General habit

Mature trees range from 12 to 20 metres (40–65 ft) tall with short trunks and round-topped canopies.[6] The roots are thick, fleshy, and covered with bright orange bark. The tree's mature bark is dark, deeply furrowed and scaly. The plant has significant potential to invade unmanaged habitats.[6]

The wood of M. pomifera is golden to bright yellow but fades to medium brown with ultraviolet light exposure.[22] The wood is heavy, hard, strong, and flexible, capable of receiving a fine polish and very durable in contact with the ground. It has a specific gravity of 0.7736 or 773.6 kg/m3 (48.29 lb/cu ft).

Leaves and branches

Leaves are arranged alternately in a slender growing shoot 90 to 120 centimetres (3–4 ft) long. In form they are simple, a long oval terminating in a slender point. The leaves are 8 to 13 centimetres (3–5 in) long and 5 to 8 centimetres (2–3 in) wide, and are thick, firm, dark green, shining above, and paler green below when full grown. In autumn they turn bright yellow. The leaf axils contain formidable spines which when mature are about 2.5 centimetres (1 in) long.

Branchlets are at first bright green and pubescent; during their first winter they become light brown tinged with orange, and later they become a paler orange brown. Branches contain a yellow pith, and are armed with stout, straight, axillary spines. During the winter, the branches bear lateral buds that are depressed-globular, partly immersed in the bark, and pale chestnut brown in color.

Flowers and fruit

As a dioecious plant, the inconspicuous pistillate (female) and staminate (male) flowers are found on different trees. Staminate flowers are pale green, small, and arranged in racemes borne on long, slender, drooping peduncles developed from the axils of crowded leaves on the spur-like branchlets of the previous year. They feature a hairy, four-lobed calyx; the four stamens are inserted opposite the lobes of calyx, on the margin of a thin disk. Pistillate flowers are borne in a dense spherical many-flowered head which appears on a short stout peduncle from the axils of the current year's growth. Each flower has a hairy four-lobed calyx with thick, concave lobes that invest the ovary and enclose the fruit. Ovaries are superior, ovate, compressed, green, and crowned by a long slender style covered with white stigmatic hairs. The ovule is solitary.

The mature multiple fruit's size and general appearance resembles a large, yellow-green orange (the fruit), about 10 to 13 centimetres (4–5 in) in diameter, with a roughened and tuberculated surface. The compound (or multiple) fruit is a syncarp of numerous small drupes, in which the carpels (ovaries) have grown together; thus, it is classified a multiple-accessory fruit. Each small drupe is oblong, compressed and rounded; they contain a milky latex which oozes when the fruit is damaged or cut.[23] The seeds are oblong. Although the flowering is dioecious, the pistillate tree when isolated will still bear large oranges, perfect to the sight but lacking the seeds.[14] The fruit has a cucumber-like flavor.[23]

Distribution

Natural range of M. pomifera in pre-Columbian era America.

Osage orange's pre-Columbian range was largely restricted to a small area in what is now the United States, namely the Red River drainage of Oklahoma, Texas, and Arkansas, as well as the Blackland Prairies and post oak savannas.[6] A disjunct population also occurred in the Chisos Mountains of Texas.[24] It has since become widely naturalized in the United States and Ontario, Canada.[6] Osage orange has been planted in all the 48 contiguous states of the United States and in southeastern Canada.[24]

The largest known Osage orange tree is located at the Patrick Henry National Memorial, in Brookneal, Virginia, and is believed to be almost 350 years old.[25][26][27] Another historic tree is located on the grounds of Fort Harrod, a Kentucky pioneer settlement in Harrodsburg, Kentucky.[28]

Ecological aspects of historical distribution

Because of the limited original range and lack of obvious effective means of propagation, the Osage orange has been the subject of controversial claims by some authors to be an evolutionary anachronism, whereby one or more now extinct Pleistocene megafauna, such ground sloths, mammoths, mastodons or gomphotheres, fed on the fruit and aided in seed dispersal.[21][29] An equine species that became extinct at the same time also has been suggested as the plant's original dispersal agent because modern horses and other livestock will sometimes eat the fruit.[23] This hypothesis is controversial. For example, a 2015 study indicated that Osage orange seeds are not effectively spread by extant horse or elephant species,[30] while a 2018 study concludes that squirrels are ineffective, short-distance seed dispersers.[9] The claim has been criticised as a "just-so story" that lacks any empirical evidence.[10]

The fruit is not poisonous to humans or livestock, but is not preferred by them,[31] because it is mostly inedible due to a large size (about the diameter of a softball) and hard, dry texture.[23] The edible seeds of the fruit are used by squirrels as food.[32] Large animals such as livestock, which typically would consume fruits and disperse seeds, mainly ignore the fruit.[23]

Ecology

The fruits are consumed by black-tailed deer in Texas, and white-tailed deer and fox squirrels in the Midwest. Crossbills are said to peck the seeds out.[33] Loggerhead shrikes, a declining species in much of North America, use the tree for nesting and cache prey items upon its thorns.[34]

Cultivation

Maclura pomifera prefers a deep and fertile soil, but is hardy over most of the contiguous United States, where it is used as a hedge. It must be regularly pruned to keep it in bounds, and the shoots of a single year will grow one to two metres (3–6 ft) long, making it suitable for coppicing.[14][35] A neglected hedge will become fruit-bearing. It is remarkably free from insect predators and fungal diseases.[14] A thornless male cultivar of the species exists and is vegetatively reproduced for ornamental use.[24] M. pomifera is cultivated in Italy, the former Yugoslavia, Romania, former USSR, and India.[36]

Chemistry

Osajin and pomiferin are isoflavones present in the wood and fruit in an approximately 1:2 ratio by weight, and in turn comprise 4–6% of the weight of dry fruit and wood samples.[37] Primary components of fresh fruit include pectin (46%), resin (17%), fat (5%), and sugar (before hydrolysis, 5%).[38] The moisture content of fresh fruits is about 80%.[38]

Uses

A tree felled in 1954 exhibits little rot after more than six decades
Typical bright yellow newly-cut wood

The Osage orange is commonly used as a tree row windbreak in prairie states, which gives it one of its colloquial names, "hedge apple".[6] It was one of the primary trees used in President Franklin Delano Roosevelt's "Great Plains Shelterbelt" WPA project, which was launched in 1934 as an ambitious plan to modify weather and prevent soil erosion in the Great Plains states; by 1942 it resulted in the planting of 30,233 shelterbelts containing 220 million trees that stretched for 18,600 miles (29,900 km).[39] The sharp-thorned trees were also planted as cattle-deterring hedges before the introduction of barbed wire and afterward became an important source of fence posts.[13][40] In 2001, its wood was used in the construction in Chestertown, Maryland of the schooner Sultana, a replica of HMS Sultana.[41]

The heavy, close-grained yellow-orange wood is dense and prized for tool handles, treenails, fence posts, and other applications requiring a strong, dimensionally stable wood that withstands rot.[6][42] Although its wood is commonly knotty and twisted, straight-grained Osage orange timber makes good bows, as used by Native Americans.[6] John Bradbury, a Scottish botanist who had traveled the interior United States extensively in the early 19th century, reported that a bow made of Osage timber could be traded for a horse and a blanket.[14] Additionally, a yellow-orange dye can be extracted from the wood, which can be used as a substitute for fustic and aniline dyes. At present, florists use the fruits of M. pomifera for decorative purposes.[43]

When dried, the wood has the highest heating value of any commonly available North American wood, and burns long and hot.[44][45][46]

Osage orange wood is more rot-resistant than most, making good fence posts.[6] They are generally set up green because the dried wood is too hard to reliably accept the staples used to attach the fencing to the posts. Palmer and Fowler's Fieldbook of Natural History 2nd edition rates Osage orange wood as being at least twice as hard and strong as white oak (Quercus alba). Its dense grain structure makes for good tonal properties. Production of woodwind instruments and waterfowl game calls are common uses for the wood.[47]

Compounds extracted from the fruit, when concentrated, may repel insects. However, the naturally occurring concentrations of these compounds in the fruit are too low to make the fruit an effective insect repellent.[31][48][49] In 2004, the EPA insisted that a website selling M. pomifera fruits online remove any mention of their supposed repellent properties as false advertising.[43]

Traditional medicine

The Comanche formerly used a decoction of the roots topically as a wash to treat sore eyes.[50]

References

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  2. ^ "NatureServe Explorer 2.0". explorer.natureserve.org. Retrieved October 28, 2022.
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  7. ^ Jesse, Laura; Lewis, Donald (October 24, 2014). "Hedge Apples for Home Pest Control?". Horticulture & Home Pest News. Iowa State University of Science and Technology. Retrieved January 29, 2016.
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  9. ^ a b Murphy, Serena (2018). "Seed Dispersal in Osage Orange (Maclura pomifera) by Squirrels (Sciurus spp.)". American Midland Naturalist. 180 (2): 312–317. doi:10.1674/0003-0031-180.2.312.
  10. ^ a b Sinnott‐Armstrong, Miranda A.; Deanna, Rocio; Pretz, Chelsea; Liu, Sukuan; Harris, Jesse C.; Dunbar‐Wallis, Amy; Smith, Stacey D.; Wheeler, Lucas C. (March 2022). "How to approach the study of syndromes in macroevolution and ecology". Ecology and Evolution. 12 (3): e8583. doi:10.1002/ece3.8583. ISSN 2045-7758. PMC 8928880. PMID 35342598.
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  23. ^ a b c d e Barlow, Connie (2002). "The Enigmatic Osage Orange". The Ghosts of Evolution, Nonsensical Fruit, Missing Partners, and Other Ecological Anachronisms. New York: Basic Books. p. 120. ISBN 0786724897. Retrieved January 31, 2016.
  24. ^ a b c Burton, J D (1990). "Maclura pomifera". In Burns, Russell M.; Honkala, Barbara H. (eds.). Hardwoods. Silvics of North America. Washington, D.C.: United States Forest Service (USFS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Vol. 2. Retrieved October 5, 2012 – via Southern Research Station.
  25. ^ "Tree Information". Virginia Big Trees. Retrieved November 18, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  26. ^ "The mystery of Patrick Henry's osage-orange: which enigma is greater; the age of the national champion or how it got to Virginia? - Free Online Library". www.thefreelibrary.com. Retrieved November 19, 2022.
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  38. ^ a b Smith, Jeffrey L.; Perino, Janice V. (January 1981). "Osage orange (Maclura pomifera): History and economic uses" (PDF). Economic Botany. 35 (1): 24–41. doi:10.1007/BF02859211. S2CID 35716036. Retrieved December 24, 2015.
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  40. ^ Kemp, Bill (May 31, 2015). "Hedgerows no match for bulldozers in postwar years". The Pantagraph. Retrieved April 18, 2016.
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Maclura pomifera: Brief Summary

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Maclura pomifera, commonly known as the Osage orange (/ˈoʊseɪdʒ/ OH-sayj), is a small deciduous tree or large shrub, native to the south-central United States. It typically grows about 8 to 15 metres (30–50 ft) tall. The distinctive fruit, a multiple fruit, is roughly spherical, bumpy, 8 to 15 centimetres (3–6 in) in diameter, and turns bright yellow-green in the fall. The fruits secrete a sticky white latex when cut or damaged. Despite the name "Osage orange", it is not related to the orange. It is a member of the mulberry family, Moraceae. Due to its latex secretions and woody pulp, the fruit is typically not eaten by humans and rarely by foraging animals. Ecologists Daniel H. Janzen and Paul S. Martin proposed in 1982 that the fruit of this species might be an example of what has come to be called an evolutionary anachronism—that is, a fruit coevolved with a large animal seed dispersal partner that is now extinct. This hypothesis is controversial.

Maclura pomifera has many names, including mock orange, hedge apple, hedge, horse apple, crab apple, monkey ball, monkey brains and yellow-wood. The name bois d'arc (from French meaning "bow-wood") has also been corrupted into bodark and bodock.

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