1 Answer

A burl is a growth on a tree that is very rare and most often occurs when the tree has been damaged usually either by some sort of fungus or mold,or an insect attack. It often looks like a big round tumor growing on the trunk of the tree. Some burls have been found underground growing along with the roots. For the burl to be useful, it has to grow for at least 50 years, giving it a chance to contain unusual patterns.

Burl is highly prized by wood crafting artists because of its beauty and rarity. Some burls have incredible patterns inside due to the abnormal growth. Burl bowls are the most common use of burls and have gone for very high prices at auction. Burls from certain types of trees are used for different reasons. Some burls are highly prized for creating veneers for furniture and usually don't make good bowls, while others are used as inlay on a picture frame and many are used for trim on a variety of objects.

Oldest and Largest Burls

Some of the largest burls have been found growing on Coast Redwoods or Sequoia as it's known, but are very hard to harvest because of the immense size of the burl and the longevity of the tree. Most burls are best harvested after the tree has died.

One of the largest burls ever found measured 6 feet and 4 inches tall. It was found in 1984 in Tamworth, New South Wales. It has never been worked by a craftsman and was moved from it's original location to a public school in New South Wales amid controversy.

Read more of this article here>>http://fishtiger58.hubpages.com/hub/Burl-Wood-A-Strange-and-Wonderful-Deformity