Osage orange

[MaxMO]

Hello. New to the forum. Hoping to get advice and learn from people that know more than I do...

I have 40 acres in Missouri. Seems like at least 75% of it is cedar and Osage orange. I have a plan for the cedar, but I was wondering if there are benefits to keeping a lot of the Osage orange around? Would they be a good tree to use as hinge cut in bedding areas? Do deer browse on the leaves? I'm not a big fan of hinge cut, but if it's beneficial I'm open to it. If I cut some down, but allow the stumps to sprout back, will the new growth be good browse?

I plan to do some timber stand improvement and open up the canopy. This property gets some decent buck movement through it during the season, just trying to keep them hanging around more. Thanks for any advice.

 

[George]

deer eat the fruits that fall on the ground.

G

 

[Mennoniteman]

Hello. New to the forum. Hoping to get advice and learn from people that know more than I do...

I have 40 acres in Missouri. Seems like at least 75% of it is cedar and Osage orange. I have a plan for the cedar, but I was wondering if there are benefits to keeping a lot of the Osage orange around? Would they be a good tree to use as hinge cut in bedding areas? Do deer browse on the leaves? I'm not a big fan of hinge cut, but if it's beneficial I'm open to it. If I cut some down, but allow the stumps to sprout back, will the new growth be good browse?

I plan to do some timber stand improvement and open up the canopy. This property gets some decent buck movement through it during the season, just trying to keep them hanging around more. Thanks for any advice.

I like to hear the term "Timber Stand Improvement", this is about number one in deer habitat management.
I don't know much about Osage Orange, but you could research "random clusters" by @dogghr, I like this concept, it gives you a little bit of everything, mixed randomly throughout an area.

 

[gurgalunas]

Osage orange wood is very hard, and makes great fence posts. It is very slow to rot. I know guys that cut posts, sell locally and make good money. The thorns are painful if you get into them.

If you cut trees and make brush piles, they will be there longer than you will. And don't cut to burn in your fireplace- it burns too hot. Good for fish structure, bunny brushpiles. The stumps make good spots to put mineral sites. The critters will work on them forever after the site gets established.

All low-hanging branches show browse on the few trees on my place, and seem to be preferred. They are generally considered a nuisance tree in the natural landscape due to their wide branching canopy. They take up a lot of real estate, crowding out other vegetation.

 

[Mennoniteman]

Osage orange wood is very hard, and makes great fence posts. It is very slow to rot. I know guys that cut posts, sell locally and make good money. The thorns are painful if you get into them.

If you cut trees and make brush piles, they will be there longer than you will. And don't cut to burn in your fireplace- it burns too hot. Good for fish structure, bunny brushpiles. The stumps make good spots to put mineral sites. The critters will work on them forever after the site gets established.

All low-hanging branches show browse on the few trees on my place, and seem to be preferred. They are generally considered a nuisance tree in the natural landscape due to their wide branching canopy. They take up a lot of real estate, crowding out other vegetation.

They sound a lot like our black locust here in the east, except black locust is poisonous to wildlife.

 

[catscratch]

Deer love their leafs and browse the twigs. I've stump cut plenty of them. They'll regrow from the stump forever and provide for the deer.

I only use OO for the fireplace. It burns long and hot.

They are related to mulberry and can be grafted to Che. It's an interesting fruit.

No pests.

Great tree to have around, but don't let it be the only tree you have around.