Don't worry Dax, I make mistakes of memory all the time. I also try and post about my mistakes as you have also, if I remember screwing up, nobody is perfect. I had read that the OO is native to Texas. The Osage indians used the tree or it's "fruit" in some fashion, and they were a Texas "indeginous" tribe. I screwed up, I remembered that OO I took pics of as growing into that tractor shelter in the background, and it is quite a distance from that tractor shelter.

If any site would show what to do with them regarding crafts, Pinterest.com will. Start thinking outside the box in how they could be used, even if they don't retain that "look". Glad you asked the question. I've always wondered, too. You'll need to try any number of word combinations. http://www.folkfibers.com/blogs/news/7250546-natural-dyes-osage-orange http://wendyfe.wordpress.com/tag/dyeing-with-osage-orange/ http://www.pinterest.com/pin/32510428531309773/ http://ibonsaiclub.forumotion.com/t9533-osage-orange-whip-1-year

Aka maclura Pomifera, bois d'arc, hedge apple tree? Found some nurseries in OK and WY, but struck out here. There's several thornless/fruitless varieties, and it's a TX native, so I've been pretty disappointed no nurseries carrying it. Sounds like a perfect big tree...light shade, hardwood, fast-growing, drought tolerant. May have to give up and go with a thornless honey locust... :-(

Well, another sister took the basket to New Orleans so the TSA people only had to grope me for my 42 FFF bra (that boning is to blame.) My OTHER sister had no desire to decorate with the things, so they remain in her yard in the basket. Conversations were started about the things though, so it was not an entire waste. Neither was the party; no exploding fried turkeys or other cuilinary disasters marred the day. No one took advantage of the open bar, and the dog did not expell bodily fluids on anyone (unlike previous festivities) Hooray! Anyhow, I now have a few of the balls mouldering in my front bed. Hopefully none will germinate, but if they do I'm swapping those puppies out. I've had enough of this ridiculous bit of flora for a while (the lumber sounds good, but I am not a woodworker.)