The carob tree (Ceratonia siliqua)

This article was published in the "Hortuskrant" of September 2005 of the "Botanical Garden of Amsterdam"

by Fred Triep  

The tree

The tree can become 7 till 10 meters high. He is slowly grown: the first flowers appear only after 5 till 6 years. The pinnately compound leaves are scattered along the stems. They are made up of six to ten small leaflets of two and a half to six cm in length, each of which is oval in shape with a rounded point.

Click on the thumbnails when you want to see the large pictures Left: The carob tree in the Botanical Garden of Amsterdam  with a bench under it (in the subtropical part of the `Three Climates Greenhouse`) Right: A branch of the carob tree in the Botanical Garden of Amsterdam with leaves Totally right: A branch of a carob tree on the coast of south Italy Photo's : Fred Triep

Flowering

The flowers appear in small plumes from September and are arranged in a spiral to the flowering axis. In most plants the flowers are budding at the new plant parts, but in this tree they arise on the old bare wood, a phenomenon called cauliflory. The small flowers are inconspicuous and six to twenty-two mm long. Although this tree belongs to the family Fabaceae, the flower of the carob does not look like that of other members of this family. Plants of the Fabaceae have asymmetric flowers that consist of five petals. The two lower petals form the keel, which encloses the pistil and stamens. On either side of this are two petals, which are called the swords. The upward petal is called the flag. The flower as a whole resembles a butterfly. But in the carob tree the petals are absent. There are sepals, which are green to red.

	Click on the thumbnails when you want to see the large pictures Left above: Branch with leaves and halfway the branch inflorescences Left under: Different inflorescences, each consisting of more than one flower, developed on the bare branch Right above: Detail of young flowers, the stamens are still visible Right under: Detail of old flowers, the stamen are disappeared and the fruits (pods) are developing Photo's : Fred Triep

Pollination and fruiting

The trees have unisexual flowers (only male flowers or only female flowers) or hermaphroditic flowers. The different sexes grow on different trees. Insects (bees and flies) ensure the pollination, but researchers have discovered that even the wind can do that. The pods and beans of the carob tree are very nutritious. The name Johannisbroodboom in Dutch and German comes from the tradition that John the Baptist would have eaten the pods. The tree is also called carob tree, which derived via the Spanish (algaroba) from the Arabic kharoub. The pods contain five to fifteen seeds. The ancient Greeks discovered that the beans have often identical weight. Therefore, the beans were used in the comparison of weights. Thus arose the name carat, a weight that  is roughly equivalent to 200 milligrams. Later this term was used in gold and gems.

Click on the thumbnails when you want to see the large pictures Left: A carob tree in south Spain with fruits (pods) Right: The fruits (pods) of a carob tree Photo's : Fred Triep

Use of the pods

The pods are in Southern Europe often used as fodder. In tough times, they were also eaten by people. The pods contain a lot of sugar and eating it has a laxative effect. Often the pods are ground into a powder, which is rich in fiber and sweet.
The beans themselves are rich in protein. They are ground into flour, which can be baked. Also, this flour is used as a substitute for chocolate, by mixing it with cold or hot milk.
In the food industry carob flour is used as an emulsifier in various food products (ice cream, sauces, salads, etc.). In Europe it is permitted as a food additive under number E 410.

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