Post by Tucson Grower on Nov 7, 2021 21:02:00 GMT -6
I was just reading through several of these interesting threads about garden beans and peas - hoping to soon grow some of my own. When I remembered that many of our native trees are also Legumes. For instance the Ironwood Tree (Olneya tesota) is evergreen, grows and blooms regardless of the weather. Every spring, usually in April, then sets pods, with one seed, but occasionally two. I looked it up, and word is that the seed aren't entirely edible. So, I picked a few, while the seed were ripe, but not yet dried. They're about the size and shape of a pea, but not green, rather a light beige, with a little mottling, they have a fragrance that resembles a pea, when I bit into one I discovered a little astringency, but a wonderful flavor (like a cross between pea and peanut), with a texture similar to raw peanuts.
Every year now, for at least the past 5 years, when the seeds are the right age, I've been eating a handful or two whenever I'm out there, tending to other things, like working the bees in the apiary - I raise a few queen honeybees most years, for myself and nearby beekeeping friends. The largest Ironwood is immediately adjacent to my Southern apiary. I have yet to experience any adverse effects from eating those seed. Hopefully I never will.
Every year now, for at least the past 5 years, when the seeds are the right age, I've been eating a handful or two whenever I'm out there, tending to other things, like working the bees in the apiary - I raise a few queen honeybees most years, for myself and nearby beekeeping friends. The largest Ironwood is immediately adjacent to my Southern apiary. I have yet to experience any adverse effects from eating those seed. Hopefully I never will.