51 minutes ago, Gene Howe said:

Ever work with"Hedge"? It's French name is Bois d' arc. Back in IL, it was pronounced "BODARK". I has the most beautiful yellow wood....until it sets for a while in the sun. Then it turns a fairly dark brown. Similar to Kevin's displayed piece.  

The French called it bois d' arc because the native Americans used it for their bows.

Looking it up I think it's the same thing... Google calling it osage orange ...

Yeah, it's the tree of many names. Osage orange is certainly one. Farmers have several more that can't be posted here. 

My dad used to tell me that as far as he knew, hedge apples (those gnarly fruits the hedge tree has) is the only thing God put on earth that doesn't have a single use. Then I read that sitting several of them around in a room kept the spiders out. I tried it, and it didn't work. So I'm kinda thinking my dad was right. I will point this out, they make neat targets for target practice (lay them on the ground first).

6 hours ago, Fred W. Hargis Jr said:

My dad used to tell me that as far as he knew, hedge apples (those gnarly fruits the hedge tree has) is the only thing God put on earth that doesn't have a single use. Then I read that sitting several of them around in a room kept the spiders out. I tried it, and it didn't work. So I'm kinda thinking my dad was right. I will point this out, they make neat targets for target practice (lay them on the ground first).

My uncle used to throw them to the hogs. Had a huge tree in front yard

I once worked in an office building on a hilly street.   Up a hundred feet was a tree and I seem to remember the hedgeapples rolling down the hill and bouncing off the curbs.