Fruit tree woods?

[Larry Browning]

I was thinking about different kinds of wood. (Steve J gave me a few scraps of wenge) I got to thinking about fruit tree woods. Cherry is very popular, but what about other fruit trees? I think I have heard of making stuff from apple wood. But what about other fruits, like peach, orange, apricot, lemon, pear, etc....???

[Jamie Buxton]

Yep, fruit trees make useable wood. Nut trees do too. However, most fruit and nut trees grow in orchards, where tall trunks are counterproductive, so furniture-length lumber is not common. Turning seems to be a more-common use of these species.

[Jim Becker]

Fruit woods are very attractive, but many are difficult to dry with stability. I know that when I was last at Hearne they had some inspiring large slabs of some type of pear that had a wonderful color. And if you get a chance to visit the Wharton Esherick Museum near Valley Forge, PA, you'll see a lot of fruit wood, especially in the kitchen on the walls and floor.

[Larry Browning]

there are lots of peach tree orchards here in Arkansas and Oklahoma. But the trees are pretty small and never straight. So I would think making lumber from them would be very difficult and rare. I also know that a peach tree produces a lot of sap, so drying might be difficult as well. In some ways I think it would be similar to mesquite.

[Kent E. Matthew]

Cherry is the only one I have used for woodworking. The rest goes into the smoker.

[Chris Kennedy]

It was my understanding that cherry is actually choke cherry, which really isn't prized for its fruit. I don't really think it actually qualifies as a fruit tree in the sense normally used.

Cheers,

Chris

[Thomas Bank]

I've done some small stuff out of apple from trimmings from my father's trees - another advantage is the whole shop soon smells of apple cider while working with it!

[Brent Ring]

I have used some Apricot and it checks quite a bit while drying. But the color is spectacular as is the grain patterns.

[david kramer]

I had a mature plum tree die, trunk maybe 14" in diameter, 4' tall. This was before I was into woodworking or had much in the way of tools. I cut it up with a chainsaw and tossed most of the wood into the trash ;(. I sure wish I knew what I was doing back then it would have made a great source for accents, pulls etc.

I did keep a couple of slices, which I've used. Here's some pictures of a stand for a didgeridoo which I bought on a trip to Australia. Even unfinished and covered in dust, the plum has a most beautiful color and grain, termite damage and all. It's made from a piece of crotch (are you crying with me yet)?

David

[Craig Johnson]

Yep, fruit trees make useable wood. Nut trees do too. However, most fruit and nut trees grow in orchards, where tall trunks are counterproductive, so furniture-length lumber is not common. Turning seems to be a more-common use of these species.

Well you could make very SMALL furniture.

[Chip Lindley]

Wild Cherry is really not a fruit tree, in that the fruit can be fatal if not pitted. The seeds and leaves emit cyanide when bruised (or EATEN) Cattlemen down the trees on their pasture land for this reason. The wood, however, is beautiful in woodworking, and even emits a nice aroma when scraps are burned in the shop stove!

[Lee Schierer]

You can use almost any wood from fruit trees, the main problem is most don't get very large and many of them grow so crooked that useful lumber is hard to come by and some will check badly as they dry. I've personally turned a bowl from plum wood and it was a remarkable color. Lots of wood turners and small box makers use fruit woods to make things.

If you have a good source for fruit wood and are willing to live with the loss and waste go for it.

[Kevin Looker]

We had a Bradford Pear that came down in our front yard.

It's a very nice turning wood - tight grain, takes a natural polish.

[David DeCristoforo]

Most fruit (and nut) trees will actually get big enough to produce actual lumber if allowed to grow long and large enough. Mostly they are downed long before that because the requirements for producing lumber and producing edible fruit that is easily harvested are almost mutually exclusive. There is an orange tree near where I live that is over 60 feet tall and has a main trunk that is over 36" in diameter! It's a good twelve feet from the ground to the first branch. This is a very old tree and it produces massive amounts of fruit, most of which is unreachable. The owners say the fruit is not so good to eat but the tree can be seen from great distances and in season, it is quite spectacular. This tree would undoubtedly yield some good lumber but no one is getting near it! Several people have offered to cut it down for them but they are not so stupid! This is without a doubt the biggest fruit tree I have ever seen.

[Walt Jaap]

Most fruit (and nut) trees will actually get big enough to produce actual lumber if allowed to grow long and large enough. Mostly they are downed long before that because the requirements for producing lumber and producing edible fruit that is easily harvested are almost mutually exclusive. There is an orange tree near where I live that is over 60 feet tall and has a main trunk that is over 36" in diameter! It's a good twelve feet from the ground to the first branch. This is a very old tree and it produces massive amounts of fruit, most of which is unreachable. The owners say the fruit is not so good to eat but the tree can be seen from great distances and in season, it is quite spectacular. This tree would undoubtedly yield some good lumber but no one is getting near it! Several people have offered to cut it down for them but they are not so stupid! This is without a doubt the biggest fruit tree I have ever seen.

By happenstance a friend gave me a table top,legs had collapsed.It was marketed as fruit wood.
The table is 5 ft by 3 ft, about 1 inch thick. It is laminated boards about 2 inch width and various lengths. It has great grain character, lots of multicolored bands. The labor to laminate this (like a giant cutting block) is intense. I sanded it and applied tonge oil, it is very attractive.

As noted, fruit trees grow and make interesting woods for turning and other projects. We cut down an old Avocado tree and made some foot stools, strong contrasts between the heart & sap wood. The tree was about two ft in diameter and very straight. If you have a chain saw & band saw, it is not difficult to work with these trees.

Walt Jaap, St Pete