Carob

Carob tree
Illustration of Ceratonia siliqua
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Plantae
(unranked):	Angiosperms
(unranked):	Eudicots
(unranked):	Rosids
Order:	Fabales
Family:	Fabaceae
Genus:	Ceratonia
Species:	C. siliqua
Binomial name
Ceratonia siliqua L.

Ceratonia siliqua, commonly known as the carob tree (from Arabic خَرُّوبٌ kharrūb and Hebrew חרוב harub), St John's-bread, or locust bean (not to be confused with the African locust bean) is a species of flowering evergreen shrub or tree in the pea family, Fabaceae. It is widely cultivated for its edible pods, and as an ornamental tree in gardens. The ripe, dried pod is often ground to carob powder, which is used to replace cocoa powder. Carob bars, an alternative to chocolate bars, are often available in health-food stores.

The carob tree is native to the Mediterranean region, including Southern Europe, Northern Africa, the larger Mediterranean islands, the Levant and Middle-East of Western Asia into Iran; and the Canary Islands and Macaronesia. The carat, a unit of mass for gemstones, and of purity for gold, takes its name, indirectly, from the Greek word for a carob seed, kerátion.

The Ceratonia siliqua tree grows up to 15 m (49 ft) tall. The crown is broad and semispherical, supported by a thick trunk with brown rough bark and sturdy branches. Leaves are 10 to 20 cm (3.9 to 7.9 in) long, alternate, pinnate, and may or may not have a terminal leaflet. It is frost-tolerant to roughly 20 °F (−7 °C).

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Wikipedia