i have always been told that when you have a good crop of mesquite beans you will have good horns. we have a really good crop this year and i have cam pics of deer eating them. does anyone know if there is any truth to this or is it just old timers talkin?

Well not sure about the big horns but they are high in protein and deer eat them. Just part of their diet I reckon.

It can't hurt, but a deer has to have had a good spring. I have read that the bean varies in protein depending on the year. The bean itself can run as high as 32% protein from what I have read, but the bean with the pod won't be as high but can run from 15%-17% protein.

It probably has to do with the fact that they both depend on rain.

My thoughts on it too. Really good bumper crops of beans are usually during yrs with decent rains, like this year, so that = good horns.

yup, lots of rain leads to lots of inches

I hope y'all are right. We had a huge crop of mesquite beans this year!

Pick the beans just as they are starting to fall, roast them at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes. Grind and make mesquite bean coffee. They have a natural sweetness in them, use less than normal coffee grounds, you will have to "study/experiment" on how much grounds to use.

We have had a great crop for the last two years, they love them and are a great source. That's good info stx, I never knew how high the content was. Nothing sweeter than Hunting a good ole Prickly Pear flat covered and hanging in Mesquite !