permaculture

[Mikal Jakubal <mjakubal@asis.com>]

Scott wrote, regarding mesquite:

>I wouldn't worry too much about their taking water as they are a 
>very deep rooted plant and your fruit trees are surface feeders and receive 
>their moisture nearer the surface.

On a road trip to the U.S. Southwest this past winter I collected seeds
from two species of mesquite just to see how they would do in this climate
(NW California; wet winters, hot summers). Don't remember where I read it,
but my notes say that the plants won't really start growing much until the
tap root reaches water--and that has been known to be a hundred feet down
(as discovered by miners)! So Scott is right. Mesquite (Prosopis spp.) also
creates a fairly light canopy as I remember. That is one of the reasons I
thought it was interesting: it seemed possible to grow things under it. The
pods are edible too.

Mikal