Buckeye Burl

Buckeye Burl comes from a variety of horse chestnut tree which
grows in the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in
California, the Appalachians of Pennsylvania, Ohio, Virginia, and
North Carolina.   Frequently the burls must be dug up with
bulldozers as they are underground in very rocky soil. The
incredible, swirling colors of yellow, black, and ocher are unlike
anything else in the world.

A burl is produced in a tree where an injury or other external
stimulus has affected the growth pattern of the tree, causing it to
grow a deformity, which results in a beautiful wood.  It may be
found on the trunk, as in the case of a redwood, or from the root
part of the tree and up around its base, as in the case of a maple.   
The resulting patterns may be wavy, swirled, marbled, or
feathered; they may have eyes or be spotted.  All of these
characteristics are valued by wood crafters and turners.