The Osage Orange (Maclura pomifera), also known as hedge apple, bodock, and monkey ball, is a small deciduous tree native to the south-central United States. It grows up to 50 feet tall, with large, bumpy, yellow-green fruit that exudes a sticky latex. Despite its name, the Osage Orange is not related to the orange and belongs to the mulberry family. The tree's bark is dark, deeply furrowed, and scaly, while its leaves are simple, long, and oval, with a slender point. The leaves grow 3 to 5 inches long and turn bright yellow in autumn, making the tree visually distinctive. Ecologists have proposed that the fruit of the Osage Orange may be an evolutionary relic, once eaten and dispersed by Pleistocene megafauna such as giant sloths and mastodons. I personally find this aspect fascinating, as it connects the tree to ancient creatures that once roamed the landscape. Today, the fruit is rarely eaten by modern animals but remains an important decorative and practical resource. The tree’s wood is highly valued for its strength and rot resistance, historically used by Native Americans to make bows.