Osage Orange
Osage Orange bark
Osage Orange leaf
Osage Orange plaque
Osage Orange
Recognition Features 

Alternate leaves; large, spherical, bumpy fruit; bark is deeply furrowed and scaly. Fruit is large and green. Branches thorny

Historical Notes 

Osage-orange or hedge-apple was once planted along fence-rows as a field hedge. It is a many-branched tree with thorns. These thorns have kept out unwanted pests, and actually led to the invention of barbed wire. The hedgerows were also used as windbreaks and for soil erosion control. The heartwood is the most decay-resistant of all North American trees, and it is resistant to termites. The branches were used by the Osage Indians to make bows. Some archers still prefer to use its wood for their bows today. Settlers made yellow dye from the root bark (Peattie 1964). Chemical extracts from the tree and its fruits are use to make antifungal agents and a non-toxic antibiotic used in food preserves. The leaves also produce a white latex when damaged (Burns and Honkala 1990).

Scientific Name 
Maclura pomifera
Scientific Family 
Common Family 
Denison Tree ID 
Walk from Huffman