Awesome rope like madrona reaction wood.

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rbtree

rbtree

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I have scads of great madrona (arbutus images, and need to get them together.

But this madrona is way cool. Spotted it in an attorney and skier friend and client's amazing urban woods. He owns about 3 acres, in a very nice part of Seattle, just a few blocks from Lake Washington. His lot is almost all composed of steep slopes of 30-45 degrees. Massive old cottonwoods, and grand maples and madrona, plus a big hemlock and nasty pine, near the house.
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I was going to suggest that a vine grew around that tree and choked it into that shape, but if the whole thing is that way....?
 
Obviously I though about that as well:D

I wonder if it is some kind of genetic defect?
 
It tends to be a species that will twist on you when drying, including the straighter grained material. A pretty wood, however. There are a number of west coast and farther inland species that are not particularly known for woodworking, but are suitable to very suitable. Madrone, Bay, Chinkapen, Western Maple, something called Pepper wood.....a few that come to mind that I have worked with. Especially including the local Oaks, they tend to be warpy. Bay or Laurel is more stable.
 
Intriguing wood; never seen such cool twists. It would be cool to get volunteer plants and transplant them elsewhere.
 
Jerry would know better, but I think Madrone likes a hot and drier climate, as opposed to the rain forest closer to the Pacific. Stephen, up in your area?
 
Cool find, Roger.

It ranges from down in California, up this way, probably into southern BC. Bigger up here than down south. They are in well drained soils.

There is a triple trunk madrona, in beautiful health in Olympia that I know of. The trunks are in the range of 36", 36", and 48" dbh. An amazing tree, but with no amazing twists.
 
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I'm quite sure that feature is the result of the tension and reactive twisting forces on that radically leaning and curving trunk..definitely not genetic.

I stopped by a house Tuesday that I rented from '77-84. Two big leaf maple, relatively straight, both have a fair bit of conical rippled structured growth in their lower trunks. I've pruned both of them a few times over the years.

There's also an old crabapple with some large deadwood. It has to be at least45-50 years old, but is still only maybe 9-10" dbh. I recall, a couple years, it was loaded with excellent tasting and large fruit.
 
woodworkingboy said:
Jerry would know better, but I think Madrone likes a hot and drier climate, as opposed to the rain forest closer to the Pacific. Stephen, up in your area?
Click to expand...

around here they need to be on the coast, literally, they wont do well even 10 to 15 km in from the sea's edge. We are on the northernmost tip of where they will grow though so its very specific.
 
There is a cousin Arbutus arbutus that grows in Portugal.
The locals pick the berries, ferment them and distill a rather potent liquor form them, called appropriately " Madronha".

I tasted it about 20 years ago, not the smoothest stuff I've had.
 
You are likely right on the mis-analysis, Dave. I was under the impression that the tree liked the more eastern slopes in California than right on the coast, but looking at it's territory range does include right up to the sea. It is a sun loving tree, so it probably picks it's spots.
 
Species preferences can be a funny thing. Around here, in the northern Willamette valley and the western facing foothills of the Cascade mountains, there isn't much madrone at all. And where you do find it tends to be rocky, south-facing slopes, which passes for a warm/dry microclimate in these parts.

It's far more common farther south in western Oregon, which generally has a warmer and drier habitat than here. But the places where you see the most of it is nearer the coast, north of here especially, where it most certainly is wet.

Western red cedar has a real interesting habitat preference pattern in this part of it's range. It looks like an upside down bell curve...higher occurance in wet, cool sites, then a drop off to lower occurance in moderate levels of moisture/temps., then again a higher occurance on dry, warm sites.
 
That is wicked cool! Thanks for sharing.

There is scattered Madrone in the Davis Mountains of Texas. I've only seen one planted, never seen one in the wild.

Edit: Saw two in the wild three weeks ago. They were just saplings though.
 
All over this country. Some folks are what I call madrone snobs, that is the only thing they will allow in their wood stove:dur: It's great firewood but there are so many good options around here it seems silly.
 
Madrones are thick on the coast, Jay. A regular companion to the redwood and fir here, Mostly south slopes. I've never seen a straight standing one. They all lean. Premium fire wood. Fetches the highest price per cord. Seen a few hardwood floors made out of it. Very fine grain.
 
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