The Black Knot (fungus)

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Skye

Skye

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No, it's not something growing on my toes, its the fungus induced black galls that grow on trees like cherry. I've turned one or two from a branch in my front yard that died and fell a while back and it was great.

I've noticed the local woodcraft selling small bits for big dollars. Not too common though.

Well, I scoured the woods at my folks house and now have two galls, about the size of basketballs.

So, what should I do with them? I don't hear much talk of these things.
 
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Not on me but I'll get a pic of the one at the house posted tomorrow. The other one is still at the folk's house. Bugger ate into the shoulder lugging it outa the woods. Guessing about 35lbs.
 
Not on me but I'll get a pic of the one at the house posted tomorrow. The other one is still at the folk's house. Bugger ate into the shoulder lugging it outa the woods. Guessing about 35lbs.
 
Thanks. Been laying low a while.

Here's a crummy pic of the first one.

gall.jpg
 
I'd rather it were a burl, but it's not.

Here's a few google pics of blak knot disease. Maybe they'll clear it up a little:

CherryBlackKnot01.jpg


CherryBlackKnot03.jpg


Black Knot usually starts as an olive-green swelling at the base of a leaf petiole, but it eventually enlarges and turns dark. Smaller Black Cherry twigs that are attacked by the fungus usually perish within a year or so, and young trees with sizeable infestations often wither and die when the Black Knot growth interferes with transmission of water and minerals up from the roots and food products down from the leaves. Huge swellings occur even on the trunks of large trees, and these may or may not lead to the host's demise.
 
I can't see the pic of the one you got for some reason, but enjoy. I love the smell when I turn cherry. I don't have any pics of it, but I was thankfully given one at around 100 lbs instead of it being cut for firewood. It's about 18" dia. by 24" long and I hope to cut some nice bowl blanks out of it soon.
 
Skye,

I've read that burl form in different ways (fungal/bacterial infection, scars, insect/animal damage, etc.). As to what really triggers the formation is still unknown that is why some equate it to tumor formation in humans. In some ways they may actually be very similar.

I know mistletoe (parasitic plant) invaded plants usually grow burls where the mistletoe is attached. Which usually leads to death (or stunted growth) of the host tree especially when the mistletoe becomes very big. I've seen a lot of mesquite that got them and they are very tempting [:D]

That said, different triggers provide different results. Not all burls are created equal [;)].

Like Billy said, you won't know what you have until you cut it up. If I were you, I will cut the burl just a little past the branch. Basically just scratching the burl surface to see what is inside. You can then decide whether you want to turn a single vessel out of it or chop it up into smaller blanks.

I bet it will look great and should make wonderful project(s).
 
Billy just wants me to screw it up, lol

Yeah, I still dont turn bowls, or vessles, so I'm still looking at stopper and pen (maybe small boxes) blanks. Should I let the thing dry as a solid chunk or cut it then try drying it? I've done the alcohol blank soak before with fair success.

Good point about it still being a burl. Didnt think of it that way.
 
Originally posted by Skye
<br />Billy just wants me to screw it up, lol

Yeah, I still dont turn bowls, or vessles, so I'm still looking at stopper and pen (maybe small boxes) blanks. Should I let the thing dry as a solid chunk or cut it then try drying it? I've done the alcohol blank soak before with fair success.

Good point about it still being a burl. Didnt think of it that way.
Click to expand...

I would guess that it has allot of bark inclusions.

I would cut if close to the truck on both ends, then in half so there would be two "bowl" blanks.

Then I could see what it looks like.

If it does have allot of bark it may not be the best for pen blanks or bottle stoppers. At this point I would wax up all exposed wood.

If the wood is clear of bark, I would save half (wax it up) until you are ready to turn a bowl. The other half I would use for pen and bottle stopper blanks.

Cutting this type of wood is difficult. Each "blank" will want to warp, twist and crack. Best to make the blanks over sized. DNA would not help much here. Good Luck
 
Stabilization, not really set up to do that. Hopefully I can just store them in their current form for a little while so I can get some idea how to do something like that.

Think I need to at least pick up some anchorseal and hit the ends.
 
Once it's cut should he wrap it in brown grocery bags like one does for green-wood turned bowls? I've had good luck with the brown paper bag technique for helping roughturned bowls dry slowly so they're less likely to crack.

My though would be that it should be cut open and turned into bowls immediately after cutting. Seems like that would get the bowl walls all about the same thickness and lessen the chances of cracking.

If you want me to do that for you, Skye, just let me know. [:)]
 
Heh, only problem is I'm not a bowl turner. If it's over 6" I cant handle it. ... .. er, that didnt sound right.

It'll probably have to be converted to stopper blanks or pen blanks to do me any good. Even at that, I'm not sure how to start it. FIL has a dull bandsaw, I've got an electric chainsaw, I gotta try not to destroy it! [:D]
 
Got anybody close with a bigger BS? If not put it in a box and ship to me and I can cut and anchor seal to your specs.
 
That’s an interesting proposition there. Let me see what other rabbits I can pull outa my hat. This the one in the pic is probably over 30lbs (before removing excess limb) and the one in the shed is at least 25. I’ve seen one that’s even bigger, so I don’t know what shipping will cost on something that heavy, but I may have to check!
 
Skye, for clarity, I was suggesting sending it out for stabilization. RiverRidge is one place that comes highly recommended by many of the members here who have used their services. I forget where you live - do you have a Woodcraft near you? Many have workshops in which you can rent time.
 
While Nolan's offer is very generous...the shipping will not make it viable since you are on opposite sides of the US. You can buy a small bandsaw with the shipping when it is all done. [B)]
 
I live within an hour (30 minute trip but traffic is terrible) of one, havent thought of that.

Well, as long as I come out with all 10 fingers, I'll be happy, heh.

I'll let you guys know what I think will be best once I grab one or two more.

Thanks for the suggestions!
 
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