Black Locust

Magicman · January 12, 2012, 08:52:22 AM

"the thornless variety"

I don't have that variety of Honey Locust. Mine all have tractor tire punchers. :-\

Al_Smith · January 13, 2012, 07:29:57 PM

Oh yes indeed .A honey locust grows thorns that look like small elk antlers .They'll go right through the soles on a pair of tennis shoes too .

limbrat · January 13, 2012, 10:19:42 PM

the cows might like the seed pods but the deer love them. the does i was watching seemed to like the pods from some trees more than the pods from others.

Magicman · January 14, 2012, 07:04:37 AM

They eat the pods but sadly most of the the actual seeds pass through and are deposited in a pile of fertilizer where they quickly sprout and grow. :-\

Al_Smith · January 14, 2012, 07:36:00 AM

That's just typical of a pasture field in an area that once was wooded . I forgot the actual term but it indicates the cleared ground is attempting to revert back to wence it came .It this area fallow ground will pretty much resprout in about 15 -20 years .

Cattle won't do much in the order of preventing new growth .Perhaps a herd of goats might but it's nearly impossible to fence in a goat if it makes up it's mind it wants out .It doesn't make much sense to spend thousands of dollars to fence in 50 dollars worth of goats either .

Phorester · January 14, 2012, 07:49:08 AM

There's a thornless variety of honeylocust , called, oddly enough..... thornless honeylocust ;D developed as a yard tree. The house across the street from me has 2 in their front yard about 30" dbh and 70 feet tall. Very pretty.

Norm · January 14, 2012, 08:49:23 AM

I do see some that are not quite thornless but not many on them. Others look like a porcupine.

I going this week to pull some black locust I put down with the excavator to use for siding on a smoke house I'm building.

Al_Smith · January 14, 2012, 09:08:40 AM

Actually they planted a bunch of thornless locust to replace aging silver maple on some of the in town streetscape trees perhaps 20 years ago .Unfortunately they also planted ash trees in addition .Well, seemed like a good plan at the time at least .

FARMERw/o FARM · February 05, 2012, 02:08:42 PM

We had a locust grove on the farm and Dad cut post in the winter. When I was 5 yrs old I'd take a thermos of coffee to him mid morning. Later, in my teens, I cut them with the single man's saw. Then I bought a couple of chain saws with the money made from fence post! I'm 63 now. Pressure treated posts today. Locust posts gone the way of buggy whips pretty much in my world. Please prove me wrong!

ID4ster · February 23, 2012, 05:49:47 PM

I know that there is a place (woodlot) just outside of Addison, NY that cuts and sells several hundred black locust fence posts a year off of their ground. They've got a consistent market from the grape wine vineyards just north in the Finger Lakes region of NY. The black locust poles are used on the ends of the trellises to keep the wires tight and secure the entire arbor. They are very rot resistant and are very much in demand within that industry because they don't need to be treated. Depending on the size of your trees you might be able to do something similar if you have a nearby market. It also makes good foundation timbers for putting directly on the ground for people that put up temporary cabins or cabins on skids that they may want to move around later.