Jamaica Dogwood

I picked Jamaica Dogwood as the first wood to write about for a couple of reasons; none of which are objective.

Jamaica Dogwood isn’t from the Dogwood family of trees. The thought is the name comes from the making of “dogs” in ship building according to Gil Nelson in “The Trees of Florida.”

Jamaica Dogwood is what I’d consider a sustainable hardwood. The things grow like weeds. They’re popping up all over my parents’ yard and there’s dozens of them. They just want tons of sun. They’ll grow straight toward the closest spot to get sunshine even if that means growing at a 90 degree angle to get out of the shade.

. A volunteer outside my fathers shop.

Volunteers, as we call bird propagated seedlings, have giant round leaves about 3 inches in diameter. As the tree grows and reaches into the sunshine, the leaves become more oval in shape and get smaller, maybe 2 inches by 1-1/2 inches. 

  Stripling Jamaica Dogwood

Jamaica Dogwoods top out at about thirty feet. They provide great amounts of shade and hold up good in stiff winds. Hurricane Andrew kicked the ass of the thirty footer in my yard but he’s back to where he was before that storm in 1992.

 Diagonal tree bottom left to upper right in the middle is a planted tree about thirty years old in my parents yard. He was severely damaged during hurricane Andrew but has since regained his former stature.

Jamaica Dogwoods bloom this thing that looks like a seed pod straight away. Not much of a flower to look at and being color blind, I don’t even notice them. The flowers look kind of like two paper thin snow peas glued perpendicular to each other down the middle.

I love Jamaica Dogwood for the main reason that as a kid dragging through the woods, I could tell what it was. I could tell that it wasn’t Mahogany. I could tell that it wasn’t Lignum Vitae either. The stuff that we were looking for wasn’t alive.

Mature 30 year old tree. (top)  Century old cured log at the shop (center log, bottom pic)

None of the books that I’ve checked into tell what to look for when you’re looking for the dead stuff. I could tell what it was by the simple fact that it has these little conical projections that stick out of the heart wood all along the trunk. The heartwood, long exposed to the elements by the time we found it, was silver on the outside. The Mahogany we were looking for was silver too. The dogwood though has these little conical nodules. Once we’d found the Dogwood, the real test was smelling it. Jamaica Dogwood has a very strong sour acidic odor. When my father would crank up the chain saw there was no mistaking what he was cutting and there as no standing down wind while he was cutting it. The dust would leave an awful bitter taste in my mouth and throat. A.S. Hitch, in Sargent’s ‘Manual of the Trees of North America,’ says “In the West Indies the bark of the roots, young branches and powdered leaves were used by the Caribs to stupefy fish and facilitate their capture.” I could believe it just by smelling it and tasting it.

Another reason I’m writing about this wood is that it’s probably one of the most beautiful of the South Florida hardwoods. It has an amazing grain pattern and a crazy yellow brown color. You’re maybe thinking that because I’m colorblind I wouldn’t be able to see the colors, but in my own way I do see them.

My first woodturning project in the new studio was the head piece for my tribal bench. I was able to use a log I had and made the head piece bigger then I’d planned just so I wouldn’t waste any more of the wood then I needed to. When finishing it, I only needed 100 grit sandpaper. The grain is so tight that no more sanding was needed. I’m glad it needed little sanding as the dust collector only gets so much and wearing a respirator in ninety degree weather isn’t pleasant. I polished the turned piece with hand fulls of it’s own sawdust.

So, if you live in South Florida, the Keys, the Bahamas or the islands stretching south, plant a Jamaica Dogwood if you can. I know where I can get my hands on a couple of volunteers. If you’re going to build something using Jamaica Dogwood, just make sure you wear your PPE (personal protective equipment). Whatever you do, enjoy this versatile sustainable hardwood.

Sometimes the art isn’t just in the finished piece but also in the parts that it takes to make the piece. This stainless armature is one of those things that will never be seen in the finished object. Too bad because it’s kinda cool by itself. So here it is; to live in someones conciousness if for a only a little while.

Been working on a big design project that has kept me away from adding to the site.

Went up to the Winter Park Art Festival. Winter Park is one pretty little town. The fest was situated right in the park downtown. The Amtrak tracks to the north and main street (Park Ave) to the south. Old live oaks shaded the venue and a crisp breeze made it almost too cool for me. I had the great pleasure of being able to enjoy the art without having to worry about taking pictures as my camera was locked neatly in the car………. Maybe next time I’ll remember to put the camera in my pocket. Weather was wonderful and the food and sites were the best. In Miami we have out share of those kinds of art shows, but I have to say, for atmosphere, the Winter Park Art Fest was the best.  

Our favorite artists were the guys from Ignatius Hats. My wife went back before leaving and bought one of there handmade pieces.  

If you get that way during the spring next year, I’d recommend stopping by and checking out this fest.

I’ve got a new wood article that’s just about ready. If I could remember how to write a complete sentence, I’d be doing better.

Cheers

I decided that despite the lack of anything to write, that I’d write.

In the near future I’m going to be starting a section explaining the wood types that I will be using for my special one off pieces. These pieces will be made using a combination of wood, metal and whatever else I happen to incorporate. They will all have one thing in common though and that will be the wood that I use. This wood will be stuff that my Father, Mother, Sister, Brother, I and several of my Fathers friends rescued from destruction in the northern tip of North Key Largo, Florida. Most of the areas this wood was rescued from is now the plush green golf courses of a well known exclusive community. I say rescued because none of the wood was green when cut. It was all seasoned and waiting removal from the then hardwood hammock. These pieces all had died years earlier, maybe due to hurricane floods or other natural phenomena. The stuff that wasn’t rescued was pushed into great big piles and burned by the contractors clearing the land. Most pieces rescued are solid heartwood.

Anyway enough for now. 

I hope you check back and that I have something posted. 

Thanks for checking in,

Cheers,

Paul 

This is a sidetable with stainless steel legs and a salvaged swietenia mahagoni (or mahogany for short) top. 

 I figured I’d post something from the better half of PM Custom. Textiles aren’t my things, but the better half is getting into it. It can be from deconstructing clothes to creating new stuff from scratch. Here is a pic of one of those things. It’s a pretty cool scarf if I don’t say so myself. This is a one of a kind sort of thing, but if you check in I’m sure we could work something out. Hurry, spring is almost here. �

Some of of you might be thinking of Jack Twist. I’m not talking about him. I’m talking about being a Jack of all Trades. My mom literally used that term like is was the lowest thing a guy could become. She used to tell me how I’d become a Jack of all trades and master of none. Seems like she was right. I’ve never asked her why she thought that’s how I’d end up. Guess it was something I was doing back then. I was reading the Wiki entry for the term and the entry isn’t very long.  I kinda like how it says that the term has become cliche’. It kinda brings us into a positive light. “Polymath” “Renaissance man” “Leonardo da Vinci” Kinda silly. Leonardo was a genius. My favorite is “Homo Universalis”          Jack Twist…….. hmmmmmmm

Homo Universalis drilling stainless with a twist drill. 

Cheers

Well last night proved to be a great night to go out. Jose Gonzalez played at the Artime Theater in downtown Miami. Opening his show was Mia Doi Todd. The weather was a balmy low 60’s and was clear and beatiful. Hitting detours around 8th street made me think we’d made a mistake heading out. Both performers made us glad we’d held out and gone. If they hit your area try to make an effort to see them. Good stuff.