Another shoot shaft attempt

[Mesophilic]

I could see birch being good.  I've read that mountain mahogany is an excellent bow wood (Wyoming's Medicine Bow region, town, and forest are said to be named for the mahogany that grows there) but I've never seen a straight piece big enough to make an arrow, let alone a bow.

We have some paper birch planted across town.   I tried ro make some shafts from some of the straighter branches but they were just way to snaky once I got the bark off.  Maybe someone more experienced coul have worked with them.

I haven't identified mountain mahogany, though it probably should be here.  I'll try again in the spring when theres leaves again. 

My biggest challenge is that I have a hard time correlating books and pictures to what I'm seeing.  I need mentor 

We do have alot of black locust,  at least what the locals call black locust.  To me they look like pictures of all the other locust trees I've seen.  Haven't found any  in a good diameter for bow staves and the young ones look too gnarled for shafts, so far.

[WhistlingBadger]

My biggest challenge is that I have a hard time correlating books and pictures to what I'm seeing.  I need mentor 

Yeah, I hear you there.  Does your town have a conservation district, a master gardening club, a hiking/nature club, a native plants nursery, or some kind of wildlife sanctuary?  A school biology teacher?  Those people might not be able to help you directly, but they might put you in touch with experts who can help you out.  Sometimes even asking the local librarians can lead you to the right people.

What plant ID books are you using?  I've got some really good ones; if you want I could dig through my pile and recommend a few.  Youtube vids and google image searches can really help with IDing, too, especially among similar or obscure species.

Speaking of trees and such, I'm going to throw this emoji in because it cracks me up, and I've never had occasion to use it.   

Thomas

[Mesophilic]

Great ideas, there's got to be someone around just couldn't figure out how to start trying to find them.

I tried a couple of books from the library, cannot recall the titles and authors.  Mostly I just download pictures on my phone now, species I'm on the lookout for.  Being able to see, touch, smell, and in some cases taste plants helps me out alot more than images and descriptions.

It's rhe same thing with other of life's aspects.   My Haynes manual for my truck kills me, but once I figure out what, say the camshaft synchronizer is and where it's at, I can dang near retain it for life.