Thread: Tree Ferns (believe it or not)

This should give you an idea of how I would approach it...

I remember when I was just a wee tacker, me dear Mum was given a small bowl turned from tree fern but when I asked her about it recently, she couldn't remember where it ended up. From memory, the bulk of the fleshy pith had some how been replaced by a white material resembling plaster. The curved woody 'ribs' and 'shell' of the trunk remained and created some fascinating patterns. Would love to have a go at it myself, but oddly enough, we don't get too many tree ferns out here!

There's one for Cedar' to WIP for us - he'd have them coming out his ears where he lives!

Tree fern seems to dry out pretty easily. It's a dripping sappy mess to start with, but let it dry out and it's pretty durable. It's still used for small retaining walls and garden 'timber', the big mamaku ones are good for chainsaw carving. The early settlers even made temporary houses out of them.
Not sure how you would go about turning it... maybe let it dry and fill the voids with resin?

Cheers

Ian

Being an old idiot from the northern half.... Is this Tree Fern (of which you speak) the same as the giant Ferns I saw when visiting the rainforest on the Big Island of Hawaii? If so, are they not structured the same as a garden variety ferns?

My guess for turning would be to dry them (Perhaps use the Denatured Alcohol method) and then soak them in a vacuum chamber filled with Polyurethane or Sanding sealer. Lay them out to dry and they should be stablized the same as pithy Spalt wood, or Corn cobs.

If interested I will elaborate on the vacuum method I have used and had success trying.

Is this Tree Fern (of which you speak) the same as the giant Ferns I saw when visiting the rainforest on the Big Island of Hawaii? If so, are they not structured the same as a garden variety ferns?


G'day Hickory - I don't know if the tree ferns of which we speak are the same as the Hawaiian version. Our tree ferns aren't like a normal fern plant. They are actually a tree with a central trunk and a crown of fern like fronds. As the tree grows the lower fronds die and fall off, leaving the base behind so you get a corn cob like pattern all the way up the trunk. They grow quite in the wild high but domestically I've only ever seen them 2-3 metres high. They also produce enormous amounts of spore in the form of a brown dust that gets everything nearby dirty. It's at about this point that they lose their attractiveness as a garden plant next to the kitchen window. I won't worry you to provide information on the vacuum method. I'm not sure the wood would be worth the trouble.

Skewy - thanks for the reference.

I bought some souvenirs in nzilnd many years ago turned from tree ferns. They had an interesting pattern of very light and almost black bands, as has been said , like ply cut at an angle. As these were kept over a period of years, the light areas shrank, leaving the darker lines proud by up to 6-7mm.
An interesting look! The interior, (they were small vases) was covered by a plastic insert, so it remained watertight and smooth.
Cheers
Graeme

A Pic for Hickory
This is Dicksonia one of the most common genus of tree fern in SE Australia

I bought some souvenirs in nzilnd many years ago turned from tree ferns. They had an interesting pattern of very light and almost black bands, as has been said , like ply cut at an angle. As these were kept over a period of years, the light areas shrank, leaving the darker lines proud by up to 6-7mm.
An interesting look! The interior, (they were small vases) was covered by a plastic insert, so it remained watertight and smooth.

Hmmm, Its been awhile since I saw any. The NZ tree ferns are called ponga. They grow much faster than Aussie ones and so are not really protected. The only really protected one is the Silver Fern.The National Rugby team uses it as thier emblem and is used else where.

Never really liked dealing with as they can be poisonous
http://pharmacy.otago.ac.nz/rongoa/pages/ponga.htm

The Pongas were often used to turn vases as you say, then placed in a low temp oven to dry and shrink the soft pulp away for the hard bark areas.
Generally made for the tourist trade, not a common house hold item.

You're a marvel Hughie - that's the stuff I was talkin' about in my earlier post - what a blast from the past that is! - but also realised just how vague my memory is - nothing like my description!

They look quite beautiful Hughie.

We call them manferns over here. Some bad people rustle them by the container load and sell them to the blaastid mainlanders.