I hadn’t known that chokecherry grew this big, but the finished bowl is 7½ inches across and 2½ inches tall. The tree was growing next to a bridge that crosses a creek between my friend’s place and his neighbor’s near Taos, NM, so it had plenty of water to grow here in our dry climate.

I’m glad I got it rough turned as quickly as I did, and then dried it slowly in a bag full of shavings. There’s one crack that opened up which I filled with sawdust and CA glue, but otherwise the bowl held together nicely, even though it warped quite a bit.

It’s finished with a coat of tung oil, which firmed up the punky bits of the wood, and then a hand-rubbed shellac and tung oil finish. Once cured, it will be food safe.

If I get offered more chokecherry for turning, you can bet I’ll say “yes!”

#woodturning #bowl #chokecherry

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