10 More Reasons Why Bois d’Arc is the Most Interesting North Texas Native Species

From Thomas Jefferson to Martha Stewart, Bois d’Arc (Maclura pomifera) trees have had many fans over the years. These enthusiasts are usually intrigued by its unusual fruit, durable yellow wood, and eye-of-the-beholder beauty. But some people are not sure what to make of them.

It is said that Queen Victoria, in 1893, was visiting the famous Kew Gardens in London when she came upon a barrel of Bois d’Arc fruit that had just been transported to England and was being opened. She was advised that the fruit was eaten by Americans. Without hesitation, she took a bite and quickly threw the fruit on the ground in disgust. The director of the gardens exclaimed, “I understand they are a delicacy in America. We must not know their proper recipe for preparing them” (Tarpley, Fred; “Wood Eternal”, p. 151).

An Impactful Native Tree

Maclura pomifera’s unique role in our country’s history can be summed up by the fact that it does not produce lumber, pulpwood, or utility poles. Yet it has likely been planted in higher numbers than any other tree species.

As fascinating as the Bois d’Arc is, we could not stop at listing just the top 16 reasons making it the most interesting North Texas native plant species. So we have included 10 more reasons this tree’s colorful history, interesting utility, and quirky characteristics make it so fascinating.

10 Interesting Facts about Bois d’Arc Trees

1. The native range of the tree after the last ice age until European settlement has been a frequent source of disagreement among scientists. The strictest estimates are that 8 – 11 counties in northeast Texas formed the Osage Orange’s native range. This was primarily based on mid-nineteenth-century General Land Office surveys and “witness trees”. Other experts expand the range to a general area between Texarkana, AR and Fannin County, then extending 200 miles southward in a narrow gap following the blackland prairie to Austin. Lastly, some believe it included a broader native range that covered southwestern Missouri, western Arkansas, southeastern Oklahoma, northwestern Louisiana, and the area referenced earlier of eastern Texas. The uncertainty is due to the extent of Native Americans’ naturalization of the tree to additional locales due to their use in bows and other items (Tarpley, p. 25-32).
2. Related to the uncertainty regarding its native range is the trade and warring between Native American tribes. The other popular common name for Maclura pomifera, Osage Orange, was likely first used by Pierre Chouteau of St Louis in 1804 when he made Meriweather Lewis aware of the tree. Chouteau had lived among the Osage people for about five years at this time. The Osages had migrated west in the 17th century, first to the Missouri and Mississippi River confluence, and then expanded south and west. This expansion of their territory brought them into contact with the Caddo, who inhabited the Red River Valley. The Caddo traded Bois d’Arc bows with other tribes, including the Osage. In addition, the Osage frequently raided the Caddo leading to the likelihood of gathering Bois d’Arc seeds and extending the trees’ range.
3. The trees start bearing fruit around 10 years, with the highest production from 25 – 65 years, and then taper off in their remaining years. Individual fruit typically have 200 – 300 seeds.
4. Bois d’Arc are hardy trees capable of flourishing in a wide range of conditions. This hardiness also extends to their lifespan. According to the Lewis and Clark Trail Heritage Foundation, Bois d’Arc trees grown from slips collected by Meriwether Lewis and sent to Philadelphia are still living today, making them well over 200 years old.
5. In a testament to the wood’s durability, an old settlers’ saying was, “Oak posts last a long time, Mulberry lasts still longer, Cedar lasts 100 years, but Bois d’Arc lasts forever.” (Tarpley, p. 208)
6. In the late 1880s and 1890s, Dallas undertook a massive project to pave their streets with Bois d’Arc wood to get pedestrians and carriages out of the muddy streets. The city was often impassable during and after heavy rains. Most of the wood supplied came from Collin County. Other North Texas towns also took advantage of Bois d’Arc’s toughness. Corsicana used the wood on its streets for nearly 50 years. In Greenville, when some “bricks” in the downtown streets were replaced, they were discovered to be blocks of Bois d’Arc.  (Tarpley, p. 200)
7. Another common usage of the wood in North Texas and wherever Osage Orange grew was for grave markers. Even when granite and other types of stone became more affordable, the wood was often used as the base for the stone marker. (Tarpley p. 185)
8. Ironically when barbed wire fences began replacing Osage Orange hedges on the prairies, interest in the tree was revived because it was determined the wood was the most reliable for posts to securely hold the barbed wire.  (Tarpley, p. 178)
9. In the later part of the 19^th century, Bois d’Arc also played a significant role by providing affordable and stable foundation blocks for homes. Some banks even required Bois d’Arc foundation blocks on homes as a prerequisite for a home loan. (Tarpley, p. 182)
10. Demolition of a school building in Celeste, TX, during the 1960s unearthed Bois d’Arc slabs that had been used in the foundation when the school was built in the 1890s. The wood was not rotted, still rock-solid, and so was utilized in other local construction projects. (Tarpley)

A Most Unconventional Tree

Bois d’Arc’s quirkiness may not make it ideal for our suburban landscapes, and some believe they are messy gangly eyesores. But they are an unmistakable native North Texas tree. Plus, their rich history offers fascinating insights into the Native American and early European settlers of North Texas. Let’s conclude with a poem by M.L. Kizer – “Oh Sage Osage”:

Aged Osage;
twisting, turning, tentacled specter of the soil;
centuries of thrills, you have seen.
Gnarly old fingers, still reach for brother sun’s embrace and you share your elation freely.
Stories told in limb and bough, are road maps through time;
I see that history, can hide nothing from you.
I listen to your whispers;
I hear your songs, on the tempestuous winds. 
What a study in tolerance you are!
Arthritis specter in the moonlight;
Story teller of old;
I visit and am inspired.
Trees, like humans, have wisdom to share and tell their stories to those, willing to listen and learn. 
An education is found in every tiny seed.