Yet another wood question

[kendra]

I've tried looking at safe wood lists but haven't found if fig was safe- I just found out a family friend has a fig tree and it doesn't appear he uses pesticides (although I'd double check since this has been filtered through 3 people already!).
If fig is safe do they tend to like it?

 

[AZChins]

I wonder if it is safe! I've never heard if it was or not. The fruit doesn't have a stone in it so it isn't like some of the other fruit trees like peach or plum. Maybe someone will know...

I love figs... (just had to add...)

 

[Brittney]

That is interesting. I don't know, and I found a safe wood list and it didn't say. I'm wishing I still lived in Tennessee though. Turns out Magnolia and dogwood IS safe. hmm, I wonder if they will let me smuggle it back on a plane when I go back for christmas. :hmm:

 

[AZChins]

You could just pack up a box when you are there and send it back to yourself in AZ.

I guess that here we have cholla and ocotillo that would be safe. That probably isn't as much fun as magnolia and dogwood though.

 

[BooBoo*TheKiddo*]

Probably a stupid question but what is a fig tree?

 

[Brittney]

Probably a stupid question but what is a fig tree?

The trees that grow the fruit to make fig newtons........ I think. I still giggle at fig newtons.... My grandfather's last name is Newton, and he has a shirt that says "The Big Fig" :laughitup:

 

[AZChins]

It's a tree that makes figs.

I grew up with my grandparents having several of them, so I got to eat tons of figs and things made from figs. But, I suppose it is possible for people to have never seen a fig tree or have even eaten a fig. Fig Newtons? Have you had those? The fruit filling of those comes from the fruit of a fig tree.

 

[Brittney]

You could just pack up a box when you are there and send it back to yourself in AZ.

I guess that here we have cholla and ocotillo that would be safe. That probably isn't as much fun as magnolia and dogwood though.

That's true, I'll have to do that. I have a huge teddy bear cholla skeleton in my room that I found out in the desert while on a hike. I could just throw that in there and let them have at it (after some inspection to make sure all barbs are off)

 

[AZChins]

Britteny...that is funny, and if he were my grandpa I would laugh every single time I ever saw a fig newton, too!

Wayne Newton went to high school in Phoenix..did you know that? LOL I'm trying to think of Fig facts or Newton facts...

 

[AZChins]

You may want to scrub off the cholla first and set it outside in the sun to dry. I don't really know how to do that...I've never prepared the cholla myself. I have a huge pile of it outside that I have never touched. I keep trying to get people to take it so that THEY can scrub it and use it....no one ever wants it...

 

[Brittney]

I did not know that. You know, they say Fig Newtons have wasp larvae in them. gross. Don't know if it's true or not, still yummy though.

 

[AZChins]

LOL I hope they don't because that is the only cookie that I actually eat...so it would be sad if that had to end. I need the calories!

We need to do some research on fig wood. I'm going to ask a couple people that may know if it would be alright. If it does, I have a customer that has some really nice fig trees and so does my aunt...maybe they would let me trim them a bit.

 

[Brittney]

Well if it is a pitless fruit, I don't see why it wouldn't be ok. As long as it hasn't been treated in any way.

 

[AZChins]

http://www.crfg.org/pubs/ff/fig.html

The one thing that really concerns me about the fig wood is that it says it has a milky sap that is irritating to the skin. I'm not sure that you'd want a chin chewing on something like that. I wonder if having really well dried fig wood would make a difference. Just from that I would say to not use it.

 

[Brittney]

Yeah, that does not sound appealing. Maybe if someone could kiln dry it, it would be fine? Pine has sap, and kiln drying it gets rid of it.

 

[ann1]

Now im definately no expert here but i thought i read somewhere that really sappy trees were out but i cant remember why off hand. I will have to see if i could find where i read it

 

[PetProductsByNature]

I'm thinking that Linda at Chins2Home in the UK had a list that said fig was not safe...we have it here but don't use it because of her reference to it...but her site doesn't appear to be running anymore :-( Anyway it's our mental list of not safe woods...but can't really remember why, she was just one of our trusted sources of info. My final thought is, "if in doubt, it's out."

 

[kendra]

I had no clue about fig trees- see how much I learn!!!
The sap thing makes me nervous, and if you all who actually know wood aren't sure/don't use it I'm so not going to risk it.
Thanks,
and I've never liked figs anyway- even in newton form

 

[ABBY W.]

LOL I hope they don't because that is the only cookie that I actually eat...so it would be sad if that had to end. I need the calories!

So you're one of THOSE people, huh? I look at food and I gain weight!!!:hair:

 

[AZChins]

I'm usually too busy with the chins and I forget to eat regular meals. I'd gain weight if I actually ate food like a normal, I think. My husband yells at me to eat dinner all the time because he thinks I don't eat enough.

I think last month I ate nothing but Cliff bars and that just couldn't have been healthy for me. But, I had so much to get done with the chins and getting things clean and making cages for people and getting toys made up for customers....

I do love Fig Newtons. I like the Newman's Own brand better.

Back to the wood. The sappy woods can't be good because they are so sticky. Every now and then I will cut up some pine and hit a knot that is just loaded with sap. The sap isn't toxic, but giving it to the chins doesn't seem very healthy at all. I suppose if you can get some fig wood without it being sappy or sticky, it would be just fine. I have never heard of fig wood being toxic.