Will lose leaves with sharp cold. Cream to yellow colored catkin flowers in spring followed by edible beans. Young plants in open areas are nibbled by rabbits and their bark may be stripped unless protected. Texas root rot is a problem in Texas, but is rarely seen in more western deserts. Native Americans make a delicious flour from the dried seed pods, use the wood for cooking, and create disinfectant from Mesquite plant parts.
Seed pods are also a protein-rich livestock feed.