OK -- you sucked me in. Mr. Rowlett provided (among other tidbits,
thoroughly trashing his New Year's resolution/s) --

>Actually, it's the Eastern Hophornbeam (_Ostrya virginiana_) which is more
>correctly referred to as 'ironwood'. The American Hornbeam (_Carpinus
>caroliniana_) is similar in that they are both in the same family, Betulaceae,
>which includes the birches, alders, hornbeams, hophornbeams, and hazelnuts.

Followed by the disclaimer that

> I must point out; I am *not* the
>botanical whiz I may sound like here -- I just pulled all this out of my handy
>dandy simple 'Golden Guide' to the "Trees of North America" :-)) This is what
>I love most about this message board forum; the mental stimulation which I
>find so addicting! Subjects posted on this forum are almost constantly making
>me go off and look stuff up and relearn things that I've forgotten

Similarly inspired and remembering numerous botanical "electives" taken in
college, I hunted up my 1968 edition of the USDA Forest Service Agriculture
Handbook No. 9, "Southwestern Trees: A Guide to the Native Species of New
Mexico and Arizona." Yup, there it was: Ironwood (aka Tesota), _Olneya
tesota_, a member of the legume family. A snipit:

"The wood is so hard that it dulls tools. In weight, it is perhaps second
only to leadwood (southern Florida), of all trees native in the United
States. It is easily polished and is used for novelties, such as bowls and
small boxes. Many trees have been cut for fuel. As tesota, or 'ironwood,'
is limited to warm areas, it is regarded as an indicator in the selection
of sites for citrus orchards. The seeds, which are produced in quantities,
are edible when roasted and have been used for food by Indians and many
other residents."

(Like the "orange" connection there?) I do enjoy some of these tangents we
get on. With rain bashing the windows, it's nice to dream of southwestern
deserts, perhaps with the flame of a Vermilion Flycatcher perched in the
top of an ironwood tree...

-- Janet Hardin
Port Townsend, WA
wings at olympus.net