What is this?

[mallinpens]

I'm new. Posted my hello here. But Hello again.

Favor: anyone know what this is?

I found it in what was left after the county bushhogged along the highway. It's the root system of some plant...as in, whatever plant it was attached to was shredded.
And in addition to the plant name, has anyone ever turned it? Results?

 

[mallinpens]

I'm new. Posted my hello here. But Hello again.

Favor: anyone know what this is?

View attachment 224342

I found it in what was left after the county bushhogged along the highway. It's the root system of some plant...as in, whatever plant it was attached to was shredded.
And in addition to the plant name, has anyone ever turned it? Results?

And when I say "has anyone ever turned it" I mean after it's been stabilized in Cactus Juice and subsequently cast in Alumilite.

 

[magpens]

Yeah ... I was just gonna say that the right side (at least) looks like a good candidate for casting ... sorry, but I can't identify the original plant/tree.

 

[leehljp]

Cholla cactus; makes for good casting for pens and other things, depending on size.

2pc LOT Large Desert Staghorn Cholla Cactus Lumber Pen Blank Casting Knife Craft | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 2pc LOT Large Desert Staghorn Cholla Cactus Lumber Pen Blank Casting Knife Craft at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

 

[tomtedesco]

Cholla cactus; makes for good casting for pens and other things, depending on size.

2pc LOT Large Desert Staghorn Cholla Cactus Lumber Pen Blank Casting Knife Craft | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 2pc LOT Large Desert Staghorn Cholla Cactus Lumber Pen Blank Casting Knife Craft at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.com

I agree.

 

[mallinpens]

I made the pens below from cholla...so I know what cholla is. It's definitely not cholla. It's the root system for some sort of weed or junk bush that the bush hog took out. I've never seen it before.

 

[leehljp]

I made the pens below from cholla...so I know what cholla is. It's definitely not cholla. It's the root system for some sort of weed or junk bush that the bush hog took out. I've never seen it before.

I agree it does not look like your pens, however not all cholla looks like the cholla in your pen. There are varieties. The fact that the one in your OP pict has a few sequential and systematic holes strong suggest they are in the same family.

Look at this one below.

EXTRA Large Chunk Desert Cholla Cactus Lumber Turning Blank Casting Block 177 | eBay

This is for a nice rough sawn piece of Arizona Native Teddy Bear Cholla Cactus. This is a large CHUNK that would be ideal for resin casting and/or turning. Good Ole Arizona harsh growing conditions have given this wood a lot of character!

www.ebay.com

 

[mallinpens]

well heck...maybe it is. It's just not heavy like cholla I know. And it's very brittle and easy to break.

 

[tomas]

I don't think of Cholla as being heavy at all. When I was a kid in New Mexico, Cholla was the fuel to go for in starting a camp fire. Dried Cholla seems like it is almost all air, hence the need to stabilize it to turn it. My thought when seeing the root picture was that it was some sort of cactus. I don't recall seeing a Cholla root cluster before. Now, I will have to run out to the mesa and look for some.

Tomas