So springs right around the corner. And my supply of hown grown is about to bloom. Agave is growing into its new life as a custom-built surfboards. This is growing on my property, and at my friends at the San Diego Botanical Gardens, I’m about to build a couple.
Still doing design work in my head as to which style of boards to build.
This is the guardian of my supply. A California Coopers Hawk. Been facinated by them since a young boy. Part of my inspiration for one of my earliest logos. He along with numerous creatures as tarantulas, and a king snake or two.
This supply also serves as a other function. It it also a natural barbed wire fence.At the back of my property. (Try jumping over my fence, I dare you. Ouch!) Native indians used the pointy needle like thorns as sewing needles. Each plant has hundreds.
And yes. it is the same plant used in Mexico to make premium Tequila.
I’ve just driven from the Gold Coast to Adelaide (2200km in 2.5 days - I’m rooted) and discovered a wealth of agave patches along the way. They used to plant it at the old outback homesteads because it was a “plant it then leave it” kind of a plant, that doesn’t need much in the way of food or water. I’m planning a trip to go back and harvest the nearest ones some day soon. Easily enough for 3 or 4 boards. I just need to find someone with a bandsaw big enough to handle the thick end of the stalks.
I’d love to pick your brains over the process you use to get from raw materials to finished board Barry. I have a pretty good idea of how I’m going to approach it, once I get access to the tools.
Barry, theres a couple around i have been scoping out, just wondered if you have any advice on when the best time to pick "harvest " them is? I have a drying out area but it seems they take on more colour with a bit more outdoor drying?
There’s one of those just down the road! I had no idea that you could make boards out of that stuff. I’m going to hit them up about it tomorrow. Do you reckon I could make a board out of one trunk?
Isn’t it the root of agave that is used to make tequila? So you could use the entire plant for best of both worlds, beautiful craftsman surfboards and degenerate’s rocket fuel.
No. It’s the body of the plant, trimmed of the leaves, called the Pina. This is done prior to the growth of the stalk, to capture the max amount of sugars, for fermentation. The elixer of the gods, comes later.
