The carob tree, St John´s bread (Ceratonia siliqua L.) is a tree that belongs to the family Fabaceae.
The species name is half derived from the greek keration (= little horn), and half from the Latin siliqua (= pods). The word carat did possibly derive from Keraton and it refers to the carob seed as the unit of the weight.
It grows wild in the Mediterranean. In Italy it is also present in the wild in the South. In the Province of Salerno is easy to find it along the coastline.
The pod can when it is dried be used as carob powder which is a substitute for cocoa powder.
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Notes
Sandro Pignatti, Flora d'Italia, Bologna, Edagricole, 1982