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Article: 'St. John's bread' grows on carob tree
- Article from:
- Redlands Daily Facts
- Article date:
- October 28, 2009
- Author:
CopyrightCopyright 2009 Redlands Daily Facts. Provided by ProQuest LLC. (Hide copyright information)
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Q: We have a 35-year-old carob tree on our property which has
never been trimmed. It is such a beautiful grand tree in our
landscape. Should it be trimmed? - Vincent J. Conway, Ontario
A: Carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua), also known as St. John's
bread, is a native to the eastern Mediterranean region where it
grows naturally as a hedge. The term "St. John's bread" is because
the seeds and sweet pulp of this tree were supposedly the "locust
and wild honey" St. John ate the wilderness.
This evergreen, trained as a tree, grows well in our warm areas
(hardy to 18 degrees) with its lower branches removed.
With its dense dark green leaves and round head, it can reach 20
feet in 10 years, and could ...