These Mountain Laurel Handrails from Rustic Wood Railing make Greenspiration Home appreciate nature in about a dozen different ways.  Not only do the sinewy limbs remind us of a forest and the interesting shadows that one casts, they are bound to beckon you outdoors where you can experience nature more fully from a porch or deck.

Greenspiration Home was delighted to make Mountain Laurel Handrails our first American Made Pick-of-the-Week for 2012.  Not only are they beautiful (and so, so unique!), they are made from a rapidly renewable resource, the fast growing Mountain Laurel (Kalmia Latifolia) that is common in the Appalachian Mountains range from Georgia to Maine.  In fact, James Pader, owner of Rustic Wood Railing in Franklin, NC, tells us that most of the limbs he uses to create these rails is actually salvaged from land clearing.  He’s never had to travel more than about 80 miles to gather the material!

Branches used for the handrails are from 0.5" to about 1.5" diameter. So when Pader’s crew harvests the limbs, they try to get only branches that are the right size. Leaving the trunk allows the tree to come back next year. Pader says that even if you take the tree down to the ground, the rootstock will send up new growth the very next spring.

Pader works with the client to gather accurate measurements and then assembles the railing in sections which are shipped to the client ready to install. Pader will do installations himself that are less than a two hour drive from Franklin, NC, so basically Asheville, Atlanta and Knoxville.  He also works closely with homeowners and contractors to assure that all local code requirements are met.

“No other handrail compares to the intricate shapes created by skilled artisans working with a natural product. Since each branch is different, it's virtually impossible to duplicate,” said Pader.

Sort of makes you regret those bland 2x4s you purchased from Home Depot, doesn’t it?

Southeast Green asks the sustainability questions

So we wanted to know what makes these beautiful rails sustainable. We asked James Pader of Rustic Wood Railing these questions so you can feel confident about using them in the next green building project you have.

Are they sustainably harvested?
Mountain laurel grows from Georgia to Maine. It is a common understory shrub. US Forest Service has generally considered it to be of no commercial value and it is regularly burned as waste. I work with some local land clearers and tree cutters to get sticks as a result of these activities and prevent it from being burned. There's not much of this going on any more though. I do have a few areas where I harvest. We generally only take the sizes that are used in handrail, 0.5" to 1.5", and leave the rest. In areas where I've been harvesting for a few years, new growth on old limbs will be a foot long after a growing season. I've driven from Franklin to Black Mountain to fill up a 14' box truck with branches that otherwise would have been burned.

Or are they found dead wood?
No

Why is using Mountain Laurel sustainable, does it have a longer life?
I do not have any numbers or studies on any of the below, all my opinion.
I would say that using mountain laurel is inherently more sustainable than the average pressure treated or cedar railing. While I do use cedar boards as the structure, there is less sawn lumber in the product. So there is less of an energy cost relating to harvesting, transport, mill, finish, transport to store, and transport to destination. Also, the sticks would probably otherwise be burned, as very few land clearers will chip their waste, it just goes into a big burn pile that smolders for days.
When compared to other handrail options like cable rail, glass or wrought iron, it would seem like there is a much greater 'green' aspect to using a forest product versus a man made product although the presence of recycled metal or glass might affect this consideration.

Are you using stains that are low voc?
Laurel sticks are not stained unless requested. All stain/paint is to match customer specification.

Is the custom built crate made out of recycled wood?
Well, definitely lots of reused wood, I dunno about recycled :)  I am still doing some remodeling and definitely save 2x4s, etc for use in crates as structure. Crates are built to be like a dog house on a pallet. I use 1/4 OSB, which is all new, and I will sometimes buy 2x4s though I haven't in a while since we tore up a flooded basement.