{"id":1067,"date":"2015-09-27T04:00:09","date_gmt":"2015-09-27T08:00:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.woodturningpens.com\/?p=1067"},"modified":"2015-09-27T04:00:09","modified_gmt":"2015-09-27T08:00:09","slug":"box-elder-bowls","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.woodturningpens.com\/box-elder-bowls\/","title":{"rendered":"Box Elder Bowls"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
The wood commonly known as Box Elder may also be known by other names, including but certainly not limited to: Ash Maple, Ash-leaf Maple, Black Ash, California Boxelder, Boxelder Maple, Cutleaf Maple, Cut-leaved Maple, Manitoba Maple, Negundo Maple, Red River Maple, Stinking Ash, Sugar Ash, Three-leaved Maple, and Western Boxelder. In Russia it is known as American Maple.<\/p>\n
The reason for the profusion of names is because the tree that yields Box Elder wood is widely distributed across large areas of the North American continent, and therefore was widely encountered and used by various people over time, many of whom named the tree and the wood without realizing that others had already named it something else.<\/p>\n
The common names do give us some hints about the scientific identity of the wood and also some clues about its potential uses and characteristics. The common names that involve “maple” are quite accurate. Common names that include “maple” most likely came about because the wood, being pale, resembles true “maple” species, and in fact, Box Elder is scientifically classified as a “true maple” being of the Acer<\/em> genus, which those familiar with botanical names for trees and woods will immediately recognize as the Maple genus. The specific identity of the wood commonly called Box Elder is Acer<\/em> negundo<\/em>.<\/p>\n The specific term “box elder” came about because the whitish wood resembles that from true Box trees, which are actually Eucalyptus<\/em> sp.<\/em>, and the elder part of the name refers to a similarity between the leaves of the A. negundo<\/em> and true elder, or elderberry, bushes and trees. The leaves of A. negundo<\/em> are quite different from any other species within the Acer<\/em> genus.<\/p>\n