Is there any reason anyone knows of regarding why this is happening this year?

Many species have environmental cues that cause what is called a 'mast'. I don't know what causes it in honeylocust.

Can anyone suggest a way to reduce the number of pods next year?

No. That is what they do. They are a mess. Some may recommend Florel, but how are you going to get it to the top of the tree? Every year?

Dan

Don't treatments like that require impeccable timing too? Our climate varies so much, it'd be difficult to predict when to do it.

Thanks anyway. =\ Perhaps it was the dramatic change from cold and wet to hot and dry that caused it.

Do you mind sharing some seeds for postage?

Bee, this is a convo that took place in 2011. Even if the same parties found their way back to this thread-highly unlikely given the changeover from gardenweb to houzz-the seeds in question would have long since lost their viability. All that said, it is not difficult to acquire seeds for such trees as honeylocust. Millions of these things have been planted all over creation, and while they are typically the "seedless" type, we've seen that even these do bare seed crops from time to time.

As to reasons for" mast years", I've seen sunspot activity mentioned as one possibility, and the changes in weather can possibly play a role.

wisconsitom, you are right, just that I am new and hope to get me some seeds of this.

Are you familiar with the general appearance of the tree? If so, you should eventually be able to find one or more which are bearing seeds. If you get that far-and it won't be this time of year, as far as viable seeds are concerned-get back to us and we can help you source seed germination/etc. info. Lots of leguminous species (honeylocust is one such) have very hard seed coats. For one example, I used to start lots of the related Kentucky coffee tree from seeds we'd collect in a cemetery here in town. What worked with those was to first of all, strip the actual seeds -they look like big beans-out of the pods, then place them into a bucket of very hot water. By the time the water was cool enough for one to handle, the seeds were ready for planting. Success with this method approached 100%.

I'm not saying honeylocust would require this, just that each species has its own set of requirements to get germination to happen. Good luck!

My feeling is that seeds from 2011 (or even a lot older than that) would still be viable. As Tom says, their seed coat is very hard.

However, this tree when grown from seed has thorns that are long, thin, sharp and threatening. Apparently the Honey Locust is good cattle fodder (so I've heard) but as for a tree in the garden, I would steer clear.

Re the huge quantity of seed pods, I don't know the why or the wherefore (they must be words to a song for that to come to my mind so easily), but I know that some trees, when stressed, produce as much as possible to sustain their kind when their life is threatened. So although I am tempted to say that they loved the weather conditions that year, perhaps in fact it startled them, no end.

Once when out seed collecting, we collected 8 huge bags of Acacia baileyana. (Seeds and pods.) It was early days for me in the nursery then and I assumed that every year we would collect 8 bags. Nope. Never again. For the next several years they only bore a small to average amount of seed.

wisconsitom, no, I am not personally familiar with them as I only seen them in pic/vids. My understanding is that they are great nitro fixers and pollinators as well as easy goes. So, I would like to include them in my garden. Plus, they could be good for chop and drop maybe? Not sure how lucky I will be to score me some sees but if anyone has any, please I would be so happy to receive for postage. I decided to grow a garden and the past few months it's been researching (thanks internet and generous gardeners who post tons of good vids!!) about how to make it happen. Permaculture/Biodynamics aspects have so much appeal...working on my first compost pile (my first on everything really)...anyhow, I think gardening is bringing out in me a nice side I did not I had. I thank-you for the generous feedback and always happy to learn. B

Bee Awesome: You've probably seen them and not recognized them. The thornless varieties of honeylocust are among the most popular street trees planted nowadays. They have sparse fern-like compound leaves and look leggy. Major selling points are they are VERY salt tolerant, their sparse foliage means they are easy to plant under, and they tolerate being planted in tiny squares in sidewalks. Not known for flowers, and actually not great nitrogen fixers. You are probably thinking of Black Locust. (Which is a GREAT nitrogen fixer and invasive species)

There is a theory that they evolved to use wild horses to spread their seeds...but then the early Native Americans hunted horses to extinction in North America. Nothing still extant and native to North America really likes their pods, but their pods are full of sugary goo that is believed to be trying to attract something.

They sucker...if you post in a local regional forum you can probably find someone who will let you dig up unwanted suckers.

What kind of locust?

Thornless Honeylocust on the Tree Guide at arborday.org