Mesquite Tree

My grandfather often spoke of how this land looked before the Mesquite Trees came and in some areas totally took over. I can hardly imagine the look of rolling grasslands and vistas before their arrival via cattle from Mexico.

They do make a pretty tree if given the room to grow and not just the bushes scattered thickly in pastures as they are seen most of the time. I had a great aunt when I was young that would pick the beans and cook them. She told me that they were a staple during dry years. In dry years the beans make their biggest crops. It wasn't all that good but I suppose it would help you survive when the planted crops died in a summer's drought. I suppose it must be natures insurance program in an inhospitable world.