Bodark droppings

[GaryR]

I picked up the kids at Gramdma's who lives in my old neighborhood. So, I decided to drive down my childhood friends old street. The airport folks leveled almost all the houses there about fifteen years ago for the new runway. Anyway, for some reason I thought there might be some Bodark/Osage down there. Sure enough, I found 2 really big one's. One looks like it will/could produce bows. At the base (18" diameter) I saw what looked like droppings of some sort. It was full of Bodark seeds. It was all around the trunk maybe 12" wide and an inch or 2 deep. What is it?What caused it?

[mullet]

The seed pods falling or squirells dropping them while eating the pods.

[Will H]

Are you talking about Horse Apples? Green grapefuit sized things?

[GaryR]

Yes, horseapples, or least what was left, it was a ring of mush and seeds around the base of the tree. Thats why I'm not sure it was the remains from squirrels eating them. Would squirrels sit only at the base of the tree to open horseapplles? What I'm hoping is not the case is that bugs have made a home in the wood.

[Pat B]

Gary, most of the bugs associated with osgae only attack dead wood or cut wood.

[osage outlaw]

A squirrel will sit and tear one to shreds.  I'm not sure if they are after the seeds or the center core.  I would guess that is what you are seeing.  When they tear a fresh one open, the mess they leave is kind of green/white.  After a while it turns into brown mush.

[mullet]

Yea, I had six of them on a shelf in my shop. I was told they were good for bugs and roaches. Well the squirrels found them and made a heck of a mess.