>Been reading some interesting stuff here... was about ready to plant a
>black locust grove until I read in Peterson's Field Guide on
>Eastern/Central Medicinal Plants that BLACK LOCUST (Robina
>pseudo-acacia) -> 'All parts are toxic - even honey derived from flowers
>is said to be toxic.'  Any thoughts / comments from someone w/ first
>hand experience would be greatly appreciated.  The long shelf life
>sounds great, but this raises another question!
 
Doesn't sound right to me. I grew up in the Appalachian Mountains of
Southwestern Virginia, where Black Locust is very plentiful and much prized
for fence posts. Folk around there had a generally high opinion of locust
honey. More to the point relative to toxicity, we used to gather the
flowers (which bloom in a large bunch with scores of flowers that look very
much like pea flowers), dip them in milk, roll them in cornmeal and fry
them for supper. Great stuff!
 
Relative to planting groves, I understand that they grow rapidly, as is the
case with many leguminous trees, but have a relatively short life span
(whatever "short" is in tree years). As I recall, in the wild in the
moutains of Virginia, some years the locust would bloom very, very heavily,
but in other years, you'd scarcely notice their blooms in the forest canopy.
 
Greg
 
 
 
____________________________________________________
Greg Hankins                       Mt. Gilead, NC
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