Tree of the Week: The carob tree

This article was originally on a blog post platform and may be missing photos, graphics or links. See About archive blog posts.

Good morning, Hiroki Kuroda, and good luck tonight. This has the makings of a memorable October Saturday --- a little rain, maybe, a little college football, and some playoff baseball. Before all that, I’ll start it with a pot of coffee and Pieter Severynen’s Tree of the Week.

The carob tree – Ceratonia siliqua

The carob tree, aka ‘locust,’ has served us for thousands of years. The sugary pulp of its ‘bean pod’ fruit provides food to man and beast alike. St. John subsisted on it in the desert, according to the New Testament; hence the tree’s other name: ‘St. John’s Bread.’

Its seeds were the ‘carat’ unit against which gemstones and diamonds were weighed (now standardized at .2 grams), and the purity of gold defined (24 carat). In an etymological oddity, the name ‘locust’ is applied to the tree and its fruit; various other trees in the Leguminosae family, such as Gleditsia and Robinia; and (migratory) grasshoppers.

The evergreen carob tree grows at a slow to moderate pace into a beautiful 30- to 40-foot, dense, broadly round-headed shape; it is often multi-trunked. The tree evokes grace and strength simultaneously. The dark gray trunk is heavy and gnarled; branches are twisted. Give it room: If used as a street tree in an average planting hole or parkway, the root flare will lift surrounding concrete. Leaves are leathery, glossy, dark green, and pinnate: the 1- to 2-inch-long rounded leaflets are arranged on each side of a central stalk, like a bird feather. Small red flowers are followed by a heavy crop of 4- to 12-inch-long bean-like pods that turn purple-black when finally ripe and contain many seeds. The tree loves full sun, and will take most any soil except wet; while it is extremely drought-resistant, it needs some moisture for a good crop, but may die when over-watered, especially when older.

Originally from the Eastern or Asian Mediterranean area, the carob tree was enthusiastically spread by the Greeks and later the Arabs to the remainder of the Eurafrican Mediterranean countries. Spanish missionaries brought it here. Pods and seeds are used to make chocolate and coffee substitutes; food stabilizers and thickeners; high-protein food for diabetics; and in many commercial applications. Wood is hard and close-grained.

Thanks, Pieter.

--Peter Viles

Thoughts? Comments? E-mail story tips to Peter Viles

Photo credit: Pieter Severynen