Hello,
New woodworker but long time orchardist with a few acres of apples and a few of peaches. Every late winter/early spring, in pruning/training trees, I cut out thousands of waterspouts (upright, straight branches), which all go to mulch. These are typically ~1 inch diameter and 3-4 feet long but 2nd year waterspouts will be ~1 3/4 inches by 7-8 feet. Are these of any value in stick chair building or woodworking more generally?
Thanks
Matt
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Replies
They sound like sticks and legs to me. Stack and dry some. When they're dry you can test them for strength.
Is this something I could get from an orchard near me? When is the best time to call & ask?
Probably, if it is an established orchard with larger trees. Most new orchards use very small trees grown on trellises which dont produce much wood. Check with them now as they are probably closed and it might take some time to hear back fromthem.
I have a few larger waterspouts from last year. I'll see how resistant they are to bending, splitting, and breaking.
You could make Atlatls out of them. Native Americans used fruit trees, Osage Orange, hickory, honey locust for atlatl's. A tool that uses leverage to achieve greater velocity in dart or javelin-throwing. An Atlatl can through a 5' or 6' dart up to 350 yards.
The arrow that the Native Americans made were sometimes made out of dogwood watersprouts from low swampy area so I have heard.
amoht22,
What type of apple trees are your cut sprouts. We had a lot of Johnathons, Winesaps, red & yellow delicious, etc... along the hills of the Big Muddy/Missouria River here in the 70's, but most of that is gone. I remember a 100 year old jonathan that would put on 100 bushel or more a season. Each one of it's five boughs were larger than a one of Stark Brothers red delicious trunk.
In high school we would work in the orchard or weekends in the fall picking off long ladders in the morning dew and fog. Then stoping for lunch and eat one of the best apple in the orchard with lunch. That would spoils you for life.
AFTER APPLE PICKING
My long two-pointed ladder’s sticking through a tree
Toward heaven still,
And there’s a barrel that I didn’t fill
Beside it, and there may be two or three
Apples I didn’t pick upon some bough.
But I am done with apple-picking now.
Essence of winter sleep is on the night,
The scent of apples: I am drowsing off.
I cannot rub the strangeness from my sight...
"Robert frost"
My dad was an apple grower and we read “After Apple Picking” at his funeral. Thanks for taking me back!
Jesse the owner of the orchard that I worked in would recite poetry sometimes. Mostly Walt Whitman and Robert Frost but “After Apple Picking” was his favorite. He was a kind and gentle soul and I was lucky to have know him and work his orchard.
Sprouts are great but drops can be made into hard cider.
Moonshot,
May your father soul rest in peace.
Yes, use your water sprouts! I cut off a large one several years ago that I planned on making a froe club, but I decided to make a mallet instead. I made it using a draw knife. I love this mallet. See the attached photo. There are no ingrain checks, and I think of that tree whenever I use it.