Desert Mesquite Trees
Hide under it – sit on it – walk on it – even cook with it

The mesquite tree is almost too useful to be in a desert environment. Fortunately, they are abundant in the Sonoran Deserts surrounding Tucson Arizona. You just don't normally think of things in the desert being helpful, or positive, or good. The desert conjures up images of poisonous snakes, spiny cacti, deadly lizards, and so forth. The mesquite, while protected by its easily avoided thorns, is largely responsible for humans having inhabited the Tucson area for well over 10,000 years. Its roots burrow down more than 250 feet below the ground surface, and their wood is prized for its strength, its beauty, and the enjoyable flavor it imparts to meats that are cooked over fires that are made with it. It's also a food source, and the bean pods from it are used for medicinal purposes. It's an amazing (and exceptionally useful) bit of desert flora.

A lone coyote passes warily through a dry creek bed in front of a tangled curtain of mesquite trees.

All three common deciduous mesquite trees live in abundance throughout the desert southwest. The Honey Mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa), Velvet Mesquite (Prosopis velutina), and the Screwbean Mesquite (Prosopis pubescens) can be found living in altitudes below 5,500 feet above sea level from Texas to southeastern California and into Mexico. In the United States, they cover about 100 million acres – roughly half of which is in Texas.

The Honey Mesquite is a small tree with 8" flat bean pods and 3" spines. It can grow to a height of twenty feet and have a trunk up to 12" in diameter.

The Screwbean Mesquite is also a small tree with 2" screw-shaped bean pods and gnarled branches. It can grow to a height of twenty feet and have a trunk up to 8" in diameter.

The Velvet Mesquite is a larger tree with 2" spines and slender brown pods up to 8" long. It can grow to a height of thirty feet and have a trunk up to 24" in diameter.

The pods from mesquite, which are sweet to the taste, can be dried and ground into flour. This flour, medical studies have shown, effectively controls the blood sugar levels of diabetics. The naturally occurring fructose combined with the fiber yields a sweet taste that aids in digestion.

It is believed that mesquite pods account for a substantial part of the coyote's diet during the hottest summer months. No doubt, this is largely due to availability during the more arid times of stress in the desert, but likely it is also due to the naturopathic qualities of this food, and the coyote's instinctive ability to realize those qualities.

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End Note:

....from Texas to southeastern California and into Mexico: Mesquite trees are also found in parts of Kansas, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Utah. But the bulk of the trees are in the desert southwest states.