THORNLESS HONEY LOCUST

GLEDITSIA TRIACANTHOS INERMIS

There is a natural variety of Gleditsia which is without thorns, but less common in nature.  After two years of selection, we are very fortunate to introduce our thornless Gleditsia saplings.In our Regenerative Farm, we call the thornless Gleditsia our worker tree.Pure thornless Gleditsia seed because of bee cross pollination are not available yet. We planted  thornless Gleditsia trees in our orchard which are isolated from THORNYGleditsia. It will take from 5 to 10 years to grow up. Pure thornless Gleditsia seeds will only be available after a few years.

 


CHARACTERISTIC AND BENEFITS OF THORNLESS GLEDITSIA

 

INCREASE AND ENCOURAGE FUNGAL POPULATION IN THE SOIL

Thornless Gleditsia is from the legume family and produces its own nitrogen, so it is very good at increasing the biological composition of the soil and its humus content. It produces nitrogen that can be used to benefit your other plants and/or trees.

We grow the trees in a completely natural and regenerative way and do not use any toxic preparations or fertilizers.

We inoculate the saplings with useful fungi, bacteria and other microorganisms from our extremely high-quality biological compost.

THORNLESS GLEDITSIA IS FAST GROWING AND DROUGHT TOLERANT 

    As we increase the fungal population in the soil, equally the biomass production per areaincreases, for their good growth and the acquisition of the necessary nutrients. Nutrients come from soil particles (sand, silt, clay).

 It provides mild shade and the leaves are great food for earth worms and soil microorganisms. Trees also help a lot to capture carbon from the atmosphere.

 

ADDING DIVERSITY TO THE ECOSYSTEM 

   There is no monoculture in nature. By planting Gleditsia in a vegetable garden, orchard or pasture, you increase the diversity and so your soil becomes more fertile.It also attracts beneficial insects and pollinators, increasing the biodiversity in your ecosystem and makes the soil more fertile.

We plant our orchard according to the following scheme: we plant two walnuts and then one Gleditsia, so each nut has neighboring views.

  The Gleditsia physically creates a barrier for pests and diseases. More detailed information about Thornless Gleditsia in permaculture orchard visit following link:https://youtu.be/UG7GXekQ1-8?si=W64qENCjzdrwK3kb

 

REGENATIVE AGRICULTURE

The more we use the methods and principles of nature, the more successful we will be, we will have less costs and increase the quality of the production.

Gleditsia works with nitrogen-fixing bacteria in the soil. Thus it produces nitrogen for itself, but also for the other plants around it.

For example alfalfa. It is a great crop, but when we grow it alone as a monoculture, after a few years the soil is over-compacted because of too much nitrogen and a lack of carbon (the balance between carbon and nitrogen is disturbed).

Gleditsia INCREASES SOIL NITROGEN, REDUCE to Zero use OFNITROGEN FERTILIZER, increase SOIL aeration and water holding capacity .Gleditsia has a lot of benefits especially in Regenerative Agriculture.

 

BENEFITS: MEDICINE AND FOOD FOR HUMANS, ANIMALS AND PASTURES 

The leaves and pods are used medicinally, and the pods can be made into flour. When combining trees in a pasture (Silvo pasture) and Agroforestry, the great benefit of Gleditsia comes from it`s podswhich has high sugar content (between 29-39%) and it successfully competes with sugar beet.

The leaves can be dried and used for fodder. It is possible to do the so-called chop and drop (to cut leaves and branches and use them as a mulch). Coppicing or pollarding can be applied (cutting at different heights according to needs and desired effect).

In the state of Alabama(USA), there are plantations with 118 trees per hectare yielding 3360 kg. pods and you can produce over 6000 kg. hay under the mild shade of the trees. In the long run, it is very profitable with almost zero cost to grow these trees.

There are many options for the Gleditsia to be used for feeding animals. Adaptive rotational grazing is the world's best and cheapest practice.

The Gleditsia extends the cool season grasses growth in the summer and provides thenecessary shade in the summer. When you have Gleditsia you will have more nutrient dense food for the animals.

Coppicing Gleditsia will produce very good feed for animals (example in early spring). The leaves are high in protein, break down quickly and therefore are very beneficial for grass growth.

Gleditsia improves the humus content of the soil, makes it more fertile and increases its ability to capture and store larger amounts of water, which is extremely important especially in hot and dry summers. On our farm our natural grass fed and finishing lamb operation growing shade are crucial to maintain good average daily gain (ADG) in lamb meat production.

Follow this link for more information on history of Gleditsia in Bulgaria. It includes recipes for leaves medicinal use and pod food use. 

 

https://search-2.blogspot.com/2023/01/gleditsia-protiv-kashlica-ponizhavat-kruvnata-zahar-vliyaiat-dobre-na-cherniya-drob-.html?m=1#gsc.tab=0

MODERATE SHADE AND USE AS A LIVING STAKE

Following the principles of nature, the Gleditsiacan be used as a living stake for other plants to climb, especially in a food forest (combining a variety of edible plants following the principles of a forest). It is used in combination with climbing, winding plants such as vines, kiwis, raspberries and other berries. In hot areas with hot summers, it can be planted in vegetable gardens and make a mild shade of crops other beans, cucumbers, pumpkins, etc., can climb the branches. It has been tested–it works great.

The branches of the lookouts can be trained horizontally or in any direction we want. It can also be used as a pole on which to install irrigation hoses in orchards to prevent them from being damaged by harvesting equipment and animals.

 

BEES AND AROMATIC HONEY

Gleditsia is an excellent tree for honey production beescollect nectar and pollen. The Gleditsia blooms in May-June, after the acacia, and thus we extend the season for collecting and producing honey. Gleditsia honey is very aromatic.

 


PRODUCTION OF TIMBER

Gleditsia is known for the hardness and strength of the wood. When we cut and harvest the wood, the tree will grow back, this time stronger and faster because it already has a strong root.

Gleditsia does not have any invasive characteristics and should not be confused with acacia, as it is quite different.

Gleditsia has a bad reputation because of its large 10 cm spikes, which can be dangerous and injure people and animals, and can easily puncture a tire.The thornless Gleditsia does not have these problems and risks.

Thornless Gleditsia can easily be controlled with animals or mechanically. 

In order to get all the benefits of the Gleditsia, but without its drawback – the thorns, the Gleditsia you plant must be THORNLESS.

 

BREEDING METHOD 

We make a special mix of our 2 types of compost about 20%, 40% sand and 40% good soil. We use this mixture for the initial start of cuttings. At 6 months stage, if any of the trees have thorns, we kill them and leave only those that have absolutely no thorns. In very rare cases, when they get big it is possible to have very small thorns on the trunk, but this is very rare.

 

TIME FOR PLANTING

 

The best time for planting is in autumn. It can also be in spring but it may require watering in the summer. It is important to protect them from rabbits. After planting, applying good organic compost and mulch is important and very good practice.

 

Contacts:  

+359 87 877 3078 Karl (English)                       

+359 88 502 7187 Veselin (BG)           


         

PRICE LIST

 

GLEDITSIA THORNLESS

  KOMETA 2020  Ltd

 

   

Order

   

 December 2023

 

SIZE Above ground    

Quantity

 

 Price per tree VAT included

 
       

LEVA

 

Euro

 

400-600mm                                             

1-20

 

11,00

 

5,62

 
   

21+

 

7,70

 

3,94

 
               

Above  600mm

 

1-20

 

13,00

 

6,65

 
   

21+

 

9,70

 

4,96