~ by Texas Homesteader ~
The Honey Locust tree has a pretty name, but it’s a MEAN TREE with long thorns! They grow everywhere on our NE Texas property. For the most part we consider them troublesome and invasive. But there are some really good features too.
by Texas Homesteader ~
You’ll remember a few weeks ago I was delighted to find a very beneficial tree at an old abandoned homestead sight on property we had recently obtained.
It was identified as a Jujube Tree. I picked much of the fruit from those trees and dehydrated Jujube fruit for use in my homemade Pumpkin Granola. They are absolutely delicious.
But recently RancherMan & I were checking on the cows in that remote pasture & I happened to look up and see what looked like the golden berries of a Soapberry Tree. I’d read about them before, but could it be??
by Texas Homesteader~
Our ranch has many beautiful trees, but none that are also as functional as the Bois D’Arc tree. The wood from this tree is highly valued for it’s rot-resistant qualities. And many ranchers use logs cut from this tree in their fence lines and barn beams.
My favorite thing about it though is the beauty in the wood itself as it ages. Many people have asked me to share a post about these beautiful trees so I’m obliging today.
The tree itself makes a beautiful shade tree, with gently arching branches. I’m showing a picture of it below, just to the right of the too-cute-for-words Hereford calf. đŸ˜‰
Like many of our ag friends here in NE Texas we’ve suffered through two consecutive years of drought. Due to the heat & lack of rain there has been wide-spread damage to our trees. Our cedars were hit particularly hard and we lost about 80% of them, but our other trees were weakened as well.
In their compromised state, last years unforgiving weather pushed many of them over the edge and we had a heavy die-off of our trees.
