The Honey Locust is not an uncommon tree in the enclosures of suburban
dwellings, and by the waysides in many parts of the country. Some of
them have attained a great height, overtopping all our shade-trees
except the elm and the oak. This tree in June bears flowers without any
beauty, hanging from the branches in small greenish aments. The outer
bark peels from the trunk, like that of the shellbark hickory. The
thorns investing the trunk as well as the boughs are very singular,
consisting of one long spine with two and sometimes more shorter ones
projecting out of it, like two little branches, near its base. Three is
the prevailing number of these compound thorns. Hence the name of
Three-Thorned Acacia applied to the Honey Locust.
This tree bears some resemblance to the common Locust; but its leaflets
are smaller, and of a lighter green. It is not liable, however, to the
attacks of insects, and is seen, therefore, in all its normal and
beautiful proportions. It displays much of the elegance of the tropical
acacias in the minute division and symmetry of its compound leaves.
These are of a light and brilliant green, and lie flat upon the
branches, giving them a fan-like appearance, such as we observe in the
hemlock. Though its principal branches are given out at an acute angle,
many of them are horizontal, extending outwards with frequent
contortions. The Honey Locust derives its name from the sweetness of the
pulp that envelops the seeds contained in their large flat pods. This
tree is not an uncommon hedge plant in Massachusetts, but it is not
found in the New England forest. Its native region is the wide valley
between the Alleghanies and the Mississippi River.