Bodark Tree Research Paper

Bodark

The bodark tree (Maclura pomifera) is a common tree in Arkansas, known to live in at least forty-seven of the state’s seventy-five counties. The name “bodark” is a slurring of the French “bois d’arc,” meaning “wood of the bow”—a reference to the Osage Indians’ practice of making bows from the tree. The Osage connection survives in another common appellation, Osage orange, which refers to the unique fruit of the tree, as do other names, such as horse apple and hedge apple. Native to the area encompassing Arkansas, Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, and Kansas, the bodark tree was among those described by William Dunbar of the http://www.encyclopediaofarkansas.net/encyclopedia/entry-detail.aspx?entryID=2205Hunter-Dunbar Expedition while proceeding to the Ouachita River. French explorers had already encountered the Osage using the wood of the tree to make longbows and various other weapons. Indeed, its wood is still quite valuable due to its density, which makes it suitable for everything from fence posts to artistic woodcarving. In addition, the bodark is renowned for its suitability in making natural fences, hedgerows, or windbreaks, and many farmers planted rows of trees for just such purposes; too,…show more content…
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