224 
THE TESOTA BEAN TREE— A NEW TREE 
INTRODUCTION 
Bj C. S. JUDD, Suierintendcnt of Forestry. 
The Division of Forestry of the Board of Agriculture and 
Forestry has lately introduced into the Territory a new tree 
which it is believed will prove to be a valuable addition to the 
island flora by supplementing the range of the algaroba, which 
this new tree somewhat resembles. 
This tree is the Tesota bean tree iOhieya tesofa) and it 
comes from the southwestern deserts of the mainland, where 
it is known as ''desert ironwood" and ''Sonora ironwood" be- 
cause of the great hardness of its wood. 
The tesota is a most beautiful tree. The grayish foliage 
and gnarled trunks give a slight similarity to the olive, but 
in May it is covered with an abundance of pinkish-purple 
leguminous blossoms. It is the largest as well as the most 
attractive tree that grows as a true native of the dries' south- 
western deserts away from the stieam beds and with full ex- 
posure to heat and drought. 
The wood, which is dark, heavy and as hard as ebon}', 
makes an excellent fuel. The tree readily ratoons from the 
stump and because it is deep rooted and will grow under dry 
conditions it is well adapted for planting in or near cultivated 
lands and may serve very well for hedges or windbreaks as 
well as for holding terraces or barriers against erosion. 
Animals feed on the foliage and flowers which are nutritious 
like alfalfa and grow fat on them. The tree bears heavy crops 
of pods, not unlike those of garden beans, and each pod may 
have several seeds, unlike the small bony seeds of the alga- 
roba, but of the size, appearance and texture of small pea- 
nuts and having the same agreeable flavor when roasted, so 
that they can be used for human consumption. 
A small supply of tesota seeds was obtained in June, 1922, 
from the Bureau of Plant Industry in Washington, D. C. 
These germinated readily and now show promise of rapid 
growth in this climate. A few seedHngs have already been 
planted out in several experimental plots on the dry portions 
of Molokai and a quantity are available for distribution from 
the government nursery at Haiku, ^laui, for planting on that 
island. 
The Forest Nurseryman has a few tesota seedlings left at 
the government nursery on King Street. Honolulu, and will 
be glad to distribute one or two to parties who will care for 
the tree and report progress on its growth. 
