Home Forums Miscellaneous Topics Rural Living The best wood fenceposts?

That?

Locust

hedge/aka Osage orange

Red Cedar cut at the right time will last as long as anything else. Of course, not all cedar is created equal. The best posts come from cedar that’s growing in rocky and dry ground

The ones that are already planted.

Many years ago, I wound up burning a big stack of Osage orange fence posts that were probably well over 50 years old, had been at least partially in the ground for decades, and were still solid as can be. In fact, the reason I wound up burning them was that they were too hard to drive a nail or fence staple into so i wasn't sure how could use them. Parts of me still wishes I'd kept them and figured something out; but they were HARD!

maybe a little known fact for some hedge post will never rot they will just keep shrinking and cracking up until they disappear. they are absolutely the reason short steeples were invented

My pasture was built with hedge post and I’m sure they are every bit 100 years old
Also my barn is built on hedge posts
And being under cover they look incredibly good and not weathered like a Line post would be
Same with my dads barn it was built in 1915 and those posts will last another 100 years easy

Be nice to buy the Dirkes creosote posts again.

I am 73 years old, I remember going in and out of a certain gate here on the farm when I was just a small child. The two cedar king posts that were either side of that opening are still there. They would have to be at least 65 years old, and are probably much older than that.

the best wood posts around here are steel because they can be drilled into rock and withstand the occasional fire.

Bet that burned pile of posts would have been great for woodworking projects.

At my folks old home that my father built in the mid forties, there are locust post near the barn that are still about the same as when I left home in 64. I went back for my father's funeral aboutv 7 years ago and they were still standjng. No one used Osage.

In eastern MT, I have cedar, actually Juniper, posts in the line that are probably 80 to100 years old, some I'm sure set by my grandpa. Damn sure older than my fencing days which started with my dad in 1968 or so. When one needs replacing its usually a 5.5' 1.33# t post that goes in right next to the old post. Fewer and fewer of those old cedars in the line, but enough to provide character. I carry short staples for repairs on them as they are pretty hard, and often wire fasten the top two wires when repairing in lieu of a staple.

Stell posts are alright, in soft ground they will bend over.

Chuckle...we don't get that much rain. In my country, steel lasts forever. But 50 miles away, there's some alkali ground that rusts steel posts out in about 10 years.

Yes soft ground here steel posts need to be longer or they may load up with weeds and wind blows lt low enough for livestock to finish the job.

Went with a friend to pick up posts and got a gas powered post pounder, haven't seen it run yet.

The hedge posts are crooked! We have a few concretes too.

I believe those had a round metal tag stapled on to one end, with a big D on it. I presume the chemicals used to treat those posts are not allowed these days.

I think you're right Dale.

Hard to beat locust posts.

Where can I buy?

Locust post don’t plant them green

"Buy" them?

Lol........

Best I see here are eastern red cedar.

Why do you say that?

probably because depending on where you live locust trees grow like weeds and people cut their own Locust posts.

Yep.

I've never seen a locust fence post for sale around here.

All the fencing businesses doing high tensile farm fence use the round treated posts and a tractor mounted driver. So, that's what's predominantly for sale as far as wood posts. Folks that do their own generally cut their own locust posts.

Hedge or black locust. Used black locust on corner posts because hard to find a "big" hedge in our neck of the woods. I am 66 and there are still some line posts that I put in when I was 10 or 11 on the farm.

rmcc

The farmers around me prefer cedar posts. Over the last several years I see more and more cattle farmers buying up large quantities of old rail road ties from the rail road company. Then pushing them into the ground with an excavator for cattle fences. Good longevity with the old rail road ties.

Virtually everything used here is pressure treated lodgepole pine. Not spectacular but good for at least thirty years. The last half mile of fence I built was last year, I was 74. Thirty years should do the trick. GD

1. Locust
2. Eastern Red Cedar

In this neck of the woods anyway.

Old bridge over the creek was made of Locust. I bet that bridge is at least 75 years old.

Here.......we use Cedar or Juniper

BLM will issue permits for certain areas to 'cut your own'

Or...buy 'em.....big heavy fresh corner posts 12" at the bottom will last 100 yrs

TSC or Cal Ranch & other farm stores sell 'em too


https://classifieds.ksl.com/listing/74250615

Kansas is full of hundred+ yr old fences hung from Osage posts. Holy crap they are heavy and hard, heavier when fresh and harder when cured. First experience with them cost me lunch. Guy who let me hunt bet me lunch at his wife's diner that I couldn't drive a 1-1/2" staple into them. All full of myself cause I work construction I said hell yeah im hungry and proceeded to flatten about 20 staple without getting a single one to sink in. After a trip to town and lunch he pulled out a bag of 3/4" staples for the afternoon's work of pounding them in.

He found that funny

I keep a supply of short staples just for old cedar (Juniper) posts. Sometimes just wire the barbed wire on the top where the post is narrower.

Dad (ole_270 here) turned 71 a few weeks ago. Here's the firewood he cut for me, from the remnant tops from cutting hedge posts laying on the ground, SE Kansas area. This was before Christmas and he'd cut 300+ posts in the previous few weeks. Probably over 400 now that the weather has warmed up a bit. Hedge is about all anybody uses for wood posts around here, everything else will rot out.