I finished three new spoons (not from the 29 spoon blanks I've mentioned before, these are extra).
The spoon on the left is from European purging buckthorn bush. Some sources say that purging buckthorn is toxic - but its toxicity limited to laxative effects (which is why it is called "purging"). If you ate the whole buckthorn spoon, you could get diarrhea... but mainly from fiber overdose ;)
This wood's endgrain resembles black locust but it has much nicer colors. It is also harder than black locust, more prone to tearout and much easier to sand and polish.
The small spoon in the middle is from dog rose. This wood is very good for carving - it is dense, smooth and fine-grained. It's a pity that it only comes in such small pieces because dog roses seldom grow thicker.
The spoon on the right is from alder. This wood has a reddish hue but it should change to light brown over time. I sanded the spoon but I realized that alder is not very good for sanding. It takes very long to polish properly and besides, alder wood is naturally quite smooth if it's left with knife finish.
I have one more piece of wood from all three species, so there will be some similar spoons later.
