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I had a locust(thorn tree)that needed to be gone so i trimmed it up and dropped it the other day i was wondering if any of you fellas have ever used a locust before,they're a slick bark and have fairly soft wood but if i get 3 or 4 years out of it then it'll more than pay for the small effort of putting it in.
Thought they had thorns?:eek:
Most do; honey and black locust CERTAINLY do! Yrs ago when worked for a tree service (The "Tree Man") asked Eric Stalbird the owner about wood durablity submerged; this guy is a walking encyclopedia and Ohio State certified "arborist; he KNOWS his trade inside and out, as well as about ANYTHING to do with "woody" plants period! Remember him saying that if locust is sunk green it swells slightly and a chemical "reaction" takes place that is similar to cedar; the wood will last for 6-10? yrs DEPENDING on how fertile the body of water is. A locust branck in a gravel pit ("semi- to infertile" waters) will outlast the same limb in a pond; in a lake they may last 6- 8 yrs on average...
Thanks for the answer it sounds like it was well worth my time,it did have a few thorns but very few and i trimmed most of them off.
Not all varieties of black locust have thorns, they definately are not slick barked. I've set hundreds of them for fence posts, they last for years and years in the ground. Honey locust are a different animal though, coverd with thorns.
Trust me, so long as the wood is green when sunk, it`ll be there for "awhile"; Eric suggested in order of longevity underwater osage orange (8+- 15+ yrs) cedar (8+- 12+ yrs) locust (8+- 10+ yrs) mulberry 8+- 10+ yrs) ash (6-8 yrs) hickory (same as ash) scrub or pin oak (same as last 2)...
My guess is that it was an inmature honey locust,really don't matter what variety as long as it holds fish.Quote:
Originally Posted by justinp61
i have too and it will last forever nearly in the ground. and one of the "softer woods?" i don't think so. it's one of the harder woods. and a timber man told me and i forget which but the male has thorns and the female doesn't. the locust tree that we made fence posts out of had shorter thorns than the locust you see with the very long and very sharp thorns that will last forever. indians probably made needles out of them.Quote:
Originally Posted by justinp61
Anyone that thinks black locust is a soft wood hasn't tried to drive steeples into a seasoned one : ).
i defer to justin. i do believe he has done some fencing in his lifetime too.
Cutting a couple down while working with the "Tree Man" was AMAZED to watch the sparks flying off the chain saw; we went through 4 chains cutting down 2 40- 45` trees, and YES the thorns were NASTY! Wish could have sunk them...VERY good fire wood too!
Like i said i really don't care what type of tree it was all i know its some type of locust and the limbs were fairly soft wood.....its in the water and will eventually attract fish all i wanted to know is how long it will last,thanks for all the lessons on what locust trees look like and if its soft or hard wood.
I'm not sure what type of Locust was used, but some of the buildings and Log cabins built during Colonial times used Locust and many are still standing.
As several have stated, locust fence posts set while green will last 50- 60 yrs and to put fencing staples in you almost have to DRILL the holes. honestly think Eric Stalbird`s guesstimate on it`s longevitity underwater was on the conservative side...
The difference between hard and soft wood is the hard woods lose their foliage during the winter and the soft woods keep theires.