Author Topic: Japanese Plum ??  (Read 1566 times)

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Offline Bayou Ben

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Japanese Plum ??
« on: February 11, 2019, 02:54:06 pm »
Is it any good for bows? 

I did a quick search and didn't see it mentioned much.  It has fruit so I'm assuming a bow can be made from it.  I'm not sure of the official name, that's just what we have always called it.

I cut one down this weekend and there's a few straight pieces that I've sealed and will let season. 





Offline Hamish

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Re: Japanese Plum ??
« Reply #1 on: February 11, 2019, 03:45:37 pm »
Fruits don't look like a genuine plum. They have a look similar to a crab apple or guava. The leaves look heavier and waxier than deciduous fruit trees. It might be some sort of tropical.
Jap Plum might be a common name. The majority of fruitwoods make really good bows, so if you have access to a nice stave, seems like a worthwhile experiment

Offline Pat B

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Re: Japanese Plum ??
« Reply #2 on: February 11, 2019, 04:08:05 pm »
It's called a loquat. The botanical name is Eriobotrya japonica. Whether it's good for bows I don't know but I've eaten a ton of those fruits.
Make the most of all that comes and the least of all that goes!    Pat Brennan  Brevard, NC

Offline Bayou Ben

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Re: Japanese Plum ??
« Reply #3 on: February 11, 2019, 04:39:41 pm »
I have eaten a ton of them too Pat.  Excellent fruit. 
I was sad we had to cut it down.  It was growing into the neighbor’s yard.

Offline upstatenybowyer

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Re: Japanese Plum ??
« Reply #4 on: February 11, 2019, 05:37:34 pm »
I'd do an SG test on it. I think there's a description of how to do that in TBB 4 under "Bow Wood."

Either that, or make a bow and let us know how it turns out.  (-P
"Even as the archer loves the arrow that flies, so too he loves the bow that remains constant in his hands."

Nigerian Proverb