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Anyone know what type of fruit this is?
I'm assuming this is a fruit. They are growing in clusters up high in two tall trees at our new house. From a distance, they look like tennis balls scattered on the ground, but upon closer inspection...they look like fruit! The sap in the middle of these things is so sticky that it takes soap and water to get the stickiness to go away, so I can't imagine eating them!
Anyone know what this is?
What is this??
Anyone know what this is?
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Here they are on the tree. See below for close-up. |
What is this??
Somehow before I clicked to view the pix I knew what the pix would be of! Growing up there was one of these trees in the neighbor's pasture and the horses ate these things. I don't know what the name of it is but we always called them horse apples.
My brother and I would have 'snowball' fights with them in the middle of the summer -ouch! They are solid.
See you soon.
--Jeannie
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Thanks, Jeannie! My husband just emailed to tell me that the guys at his office also call them 'horse apples' and that you don't eat them. No worries...I had no plans to eat them!
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They're called osage orange trees (we call 'em monkey ball trees)! You don't eat them but I hear they're good for keeping spiders out of basements. My neighbor has tons of these trees and every fall when they start falling off the tree, people always stop by to collect them so I guess it works! Hope this helps!
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Hello! Do what my husband and I do if we don't know what something is....take it to a garden nursery they will know. I hope when you find out what it is you will post the name. I'm curious too!!
Have a Great Day!
Blessings,
CarolG
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Beth, my husband Ervin recognized this tree, as one grew near his grandmother's house (near Needville, TX). He checked our tree book and found the name is Osage-Orange. The book says the leaves are 3-5 inches long, 2-3 inches wide, with smooth margins; and the leaves turn bright yellow in the fall. The fruit is inedible and 3-5 inches in diameter, and a milky juice exudes when bruised. I tried to scan in the photo from the book but it won't paste here. The fruit looks like your photo.
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Those are called Osage Oranges. The only thing I've heard they are good for is to put around the outside of your house to keep spiders and other insects away.
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My hubby says they are "horse apples". The real name is something like boardock tree. Not sure about the spelling.
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Beth, they are crab apples or "horse apples. And they are not edible.
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Osage orange for sure!
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Bois D'Arc Tree, aka Bodark Tree, aka Osage Orange, aka Horse Apple Tree, aka Hedge Apple Tree. Bois D' Arc french for wood of the bow so called because the Osage Indians made bows from woood of this tree.
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I have never seen horses eat the horseapples, but I suppose they do. I can tell you that the squirrels love them. You will probably have lots of the furry little critters if you have horseapples. Also, I believe it is true that they are an effective pesticide against some types of insects.
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