I've been lurking around here a good while. I didn't post anything earlier since I really didn't have anything to add. I've been reading all the old posts and have found a lot of great information and also a lot of entertainment. This forum sure seems to be THE place to visit.
I've read quite a bit about the Whack scale and believe I understand it and want to confirm that I am applying it properly in this case. Would this group of cypress knees qualify as a Whack-O Cypress Knees?
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/14314/CypressKnees-002.jpg)
If it does qualify then I'd like to know what's the best way to proceed with these DanG things? (They were collected from the site of a land clearing operation.)
Welcome to the Forestry Forum PC-Urban-Sawyer.
You're treading on thin ice with cypress knee project.
I don't know what the law reads now, but I am checking it out through the Division of Forestry.
Cypress knees were made illegal to cut in the 1960's because they were being used so prolifically as tourist trap fodder. When the knee is cut, it kills or severely damages the cypress to which it belonged. Many people didn't understand this and were cutting any knees they could find to make clocks, etc.
I think, at the time, it was a total ban. It may have modified to allow the harvest of knees on cleared and developed land. I just don't know.
It is the kind of thing that you want to keep close to your chest until the legality is approved. The Government's Environmental departments have sharp teeth when it comes to several laws on the books, and Cypress is one of those "wetland" trees that can get you into trouble.
I got the info from the Division of Forestry that there is no law prohibiting the cutting of cypress knees in the State of Florida. So, here is the thread again. :)
The Forester did say that there is a report about vendors selling cypress slabs. I don't know if he is talking about table tops or the outside jackets of sawlogs. I'm awaiting a time when I can speak with this fellow by phone about that subject.
I had wondered about this thread and where it went. I am interested in any follow up here.
Pc-Urban-Sawyer, that is DanG shore a whack of knees! Any idee what you're gonna do with'em?
Whack o' knees! [Insert Tonya Harding jokes here]. 8)
Welcome to the forum PC
Tom:
Thanks for the followup and for restoring this thread now that the legality of these items seems to be resolved...
DanG:
I'd like to use a few of the larger ones as table lamp bases. Other than that I'm sorta "stumped" (I know, a knee is not a stump...) and open for ideas and suggestions.
First I've got to resolve the problem of how to process them so they're ready for use. Tom indicated in a PM that the traditional method of prep included boiling in water to facilitate removing the bark which should be peeled of carefully to leave the smooth inner surface. I'm sure this needs to be done outside (my better half is aggravated enough by the clutter and mess potential of my new "hobby" as it is, no need to make it worse by stinking up the kitchen) and I'm wishing I had one of those big old cast iron washpots that every farm family had when I was a boy...
In the meantime things are on hold as I work on getting the cypress sawlogs and some large stumps from the land clearing site to my "logyard"... At first I thought it was going to be just a couple of stumps but due to changing circumstances it's growing into a potential whack of sawlogs...
PC -Urban i've taken 4in. cookies off the bottom of log for a coffee table slab & used 3 of the taller knees cut to the same length, put them between two plywood disc's secured with glue & screws, to be used for a base. On the base i would also glue several shorter knees & sprinkle sawdust or wood chip's to camo the bare plywood, then you anchored the top up through the top pc. of plywood,then put a finish of your choice it made for some nice table's 8)
Bein' from the land of no Cypress....
I have never seen a cypress knee.
Just the name says alot but does anyone have pics of knees on the tree? I'd like to see them.
mh
mh.........these are not mine; they belong to Ms. Google Images. They're very typical.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/13111/cypress%20knees.jpg)
Here is a pic of a nice cypress about 7' in diameter that shows the knees sticking up on the sides and front of the tree. It is thought that they aid in respiration since cypress tends to grow on swampy wet ground.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/14370/Cypressknees.jpg)
I would be interested in seeing a sample cross section of your wood PC. Do you have a knee roughly 12" in diameter (term used loosely I realize) that might show what lurks inside?
Do you have more than this, or is this the whole enchilada? ???
Here's a little different take on Knees. This Rootwad we have for sale has 3 knees on it. It would make a real neat Glass top table, withcutouts for the knees to stick through.
(https://forestryforum.com/gallery/albums/userpics/10330/FDHRootwad3%20copy.jpg)
I heard the decoy carvers love the stump wood (at root collar) and the knees for carving duck decoys.
How rare is it to see cypress knees or roots with figure/burl anything like that of some sort.
kevjay: Tom says that the interior of Cypress knees is unremarkable. I'll try to split one open this weekend and post photos. The main attraction of these items are their varied exterior forms which when the bark is peeled and the inner surface is polished presents a unique shape to each item.
There are a few more of the knees remaining at the clearing site and I may get the time to harvest them before the job is done.
Hi-Country Orange: That's an interesting design idea, using the knees as table supports...
WDH: Hmmm, I'm not a carver and don't think I ever could develope the skill/talent required. That's a very big cypress tree in the photo. I was feeling pretty proud of the larger ones I've taken down on this project and they were only 24 inches at the 16 ft mark...
Yes, that is an exceptional tree. It is just shy of being the Georgia State Champion. It is 125' tall and in good health. Clearly not a typical speciman! :) I believe the wood in the knee is more like root-wood that stem-wood, so it is quite soft.