Next "AG topic" write up poll???

[RBHarter]

When I edited this posted up here. explaination below.

http://www.wichitabuggywhip.com/firewor ... tests.html

Larry ,
Ya don't get to much farther out in the desert than Walker Lake Nv. I made the Grape wood from the cut back on the grapes out back an established plant. My folks are in Ar I brought some gum home from there. They are on the hunt for confirmed black willow. The willow can be had in small quanities at wal-mart as art supplies.

I did some searching ,Hercules powder when in Hercules Ca circa 1840-1940 used all the willows and alder to feed the frontiersmen, mines, industry and a couple of wars. Much of the CSA powder was made w/cottonwood dirty but usable.

A couple of sort of helpful charts in the quest for charcoal woods keeping in mind that black willow is the prefered for gun powder.

[larryw]

well, in this part of the Sonora we have a couple different Acacia's,
Desert Willow, Cottonwood, Ariz Cypress, couple different Ash,
Ironwood, & several pines. Sure am interested in trying my hand at BP,
Making & shooting. Don't know what the saw mills up in the high country
might have, Hardwoods & pine are all that I know???

[RBHarter]

The willows will be your best bet I think .
Western/Utah juniper/common cedar is said to be good also but like the fireplace ash is sooty.

[AlaskanGuy]

Plus, willow is one of the easiest things to transplant... It also grafts well into other stuff, and other stuff grafts into it easily as well... You can take a green branch, about 6 inches long, stripped of everything but the bark, stick it in water, and 95% of the time it will root.... I have sent sticks to guys on cast boolits and they have started even after spending 9 days in the mail... Just put the sticks in a plastic ziplock with wet paper towels and off the go.... The person gets some great willow that is hardy, hard to kill off once started, dont mind sandy soil, and are great for making black powder from stuff that grows around their house... Whats not to like.

AG

[AlaskanGuy]

Sorry this is taking so long guys..... Dont give up on me yet.... It is hunting season, and the salmon are running... Time is precious in the spring....

Here is a pic of my son with a nice Copper river red..... And a cute grayling accident...


AG

[mr surveyor]

AG, I don't know how I missed your previous post on how easy it is to transplant willow ... I'll make this as short as I can .....

Here in NE Texas we certainly have our share of willow down in the wet bottom land. Back in 1978-79 I was running a survey crew planning a cross country route about 3 miles long for a proposed city water main. About a mile of the route went across some fairly clean, but lightly wooded bottom land with a lot of willows. We knew we would be coming back for construction (if our route was "accepted") so I decided that our little temporary wooden stakes (aka, lath) probably wouldn't survive for 12-18 months and would make retracement of our points a bit more difficult, so I had one of the younger rookies on the crew cut some 6 foot willow poles about an inch to inch and a half diameter that would easily push a foot into the soft ground by each 100 foot staked point. Sure enough I was sent back to that project for construction staking about 18 months later, but with only one of the original four guys on the route design survey. When we got to the bottom land that was pretty open first time through, there were willows growing. The new crew members were complaining about the "previous crew" not having cleared the route .... my other partner in crime had a good life behind the backs of the three new guys with the machetes. Yep, sure enough, 3 out of four of them willow sticks had become full spreading willow bushes, and the new guys didn't have a clue why they were all in such straight lines and even spacing until we started setting the new control stakes.

Ahhhh .... fun with willow .... fun times, fond memories

JD

[mr surveyor]

hey, that wouldn't be the railroad bridge behind your son in that second picture would it?

[RBHarter]

I remember a ranch in Utah . They had the neatest cow proof drive up to the house and down the road frontage.
As the story went they had been in a stretch for whatever reason to get the fences up and had run short on cedar posts . They were clearing a field and had some 8' cottonwoods (or probably popalar) so they posted them up for the frontage and driveway fence 3/4 of them rooted. In 74' the place had nearly a mile of solid tree fence in nice straight lines 10' c to c.

[62chevy]

Those are some very cool tree stories.