Vine Drawing Charcoal

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A selection of thin, vine drawing charcoal sticks, made near the Shawangunk Ridge of New York.

All charcoal is made from invasive species harvested by hand from local forests.

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Quantity Weight Price
9x pieces or >300g $15
Mixed vines of Japanese Barberry & Multiflora Rose

Why make this charcoal?

As residents & landowners in New York State we’ve watched as invasive species have spread quickly and unchecked - two specifically, Multiflora Rose (Rosa multiflora) and Japanese Barberry (Berberis thunbergii ).

Both plants forms dense thickets that invade pastures, compete with native trees and herbaceous plants1, 2 and increase the number of ticks in our forests.3 Add in an abundance of nasty thorns and you get the picture.

We began to wonder how to control these pests and also make use of them - why not help our native ecosystem & create beauty at the same time?

How is the charcoal made?

The rose & barberry vines are carefully (thorns!) harvested by hand.

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The collected vines and roots are sorted for size, cleaned, trimmed to hand and then packed into fire-proof crucibles for the charcoal charring process.

After nearly 3 hours at over 500°F, and twice that for cooling, the charcoal is removed from the crucible and hand-graded.

1.
Munger. 2002. Rosa multiflora. In: Fire Effects Information System. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fire Sciences Laboratory.
2.
Ward, Worthley and Williams. 2009. Controlling Japanese barberry (Berberis thunbergii DC) in southern New England, USA. Forest Ecology and Management 257(2): 561-566.
WCAG 2.2 AA Compliant
Made in 2025 by Red Eft Ranch