Carob (St John's bread)

Ceratonia siliqua

When: Typically August – October — August, September, October. Earlier in warm, low country; later in the hills.
Where it grows: Warm, dry, frost-free hills and coastal plains around the Mediterranean, in maquis, open woodland and old terraced groves; wild in the east and long naturalised in the west.
Identification: A broad, round-crowned evergreen tree up to 15 m (50 ft) with leaves 10–20 cm (4–8 in) long, divided into pairs of leaflets. Small flowers grow straight from the trunk and old branches in autumn. The pods are flat, leathery and slightly curved, 10–30 cm (4–12 in) long, ripening from green to dark brown, sweet-smelling, with 10–13 very hard seeds. Most trees are male or female, and only females bear pods.
Look-alikes: Identify the tree as well as the pod: divided leaves, flowers on the trunk, and pods with rock-hard seeds.
Harvest and use: Take pods when they are dark brown and dry, before the winter rains; they are traditionally shaken or knocked down with a long hooked pole. Chew the sweet pulp straight from the pod and spit out the seeds, roast and grind the pods into a cocoa-like flour, or boil the ground pods into a thick, honey-like syrup.
Caution: Many carobs stand in owned groves and on farm terraces: ask before you take pods. The pods hold up to 1.5% tannins, which hinder the digestion of protein in quantity; don't try to eat the seeds. In protected areas such as Italy's national parks, collecting plants is forbidden outside farmed land unless the park allows it.

Carob (St John's bread) at a glance

Also called: St John's bread, locust bean, locust tree; algarrobo (Spain), alfarroba or garrofa (Portugal), garrofer (Catalonia)
Family: Fabaceae (the pea and bean family)
Where it grows: Native to the eastern and central Mediterranean and North Africa — Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, the Levant, Italy and its islands, southern France, Spain, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya — and long naturalised in the west, from Portugal's Algarve to the Balearics. Spain grows the most.
When to pick: The pods take about a year to ripen and are gathered in late summer and early autumn, before the winter rains, when they have turned dark brown. Trees flower in autumn.
Parts used: The pod pulp, raw, roasted and ground into flour, or boiled into syrup. The seeds give locust bean gum but are too hard to eat.
Is any of it poisonous?: Nothing poisonous, but the pods contain up to 1.5% tannins, which interfere with the body's use of protein.

Questions people ask about carob

Can you eat carob pods straight from the tree?

Yes, when they are ripe, dark brown and dry: the pulp is sweet and chewed as a snack. Spit out the seeds, which are very hard.

When are carob pods ripe?

In late summer and early autumn, before the winter rains. The pods take a full year to mature, so flowers and green pods can be on the tree together.

Why do only some carob trees have pods?

Because most carob trees are either male or female, and only females bear pods.

Where does the word 'carat' come from?

From the carob seed. The carat takes its name, through the Arabic qīrāṭ, from the Greek name for the seed.

Found in these regions

Local season

This week's foraging guide for a place

Enter a town, postal code or ZIP for what is in season there this week, based on the local climate, this week's weather and the ecological region.

Also in season in October

NutOctober – November
Sweet chestnut
Castanea sativa
A big tree with long, glossy leaves edged with sharp, regular teeth, and bark that twists in spiralling ridges on old trunks. The nuts come in twos and threes inside a husk covered in dense, needle-sharp spines; each is glossy brown, flat on one side, with a pointed tuft at the tip.
Identification and look-alikes →
Photo: John Powers · CC BY 4.0
BerryAugust – October
Rowan berries
Sorbus aucuparia
A slim tree with smooth silvery-grey bark and feathery leaves of many toothed leaflets in pairs; big flat clusters of scarlet-orange berries, each about 1 cm (⅜ in) across with a tiny black five-pointed star at the tip.
Identification and look-alikes →
Photo: Therese Phillips · CC BY 4.0
BerryAugust – October
Sea buckthorn
Hippophae rhamnoides
A thorny shrub with narrow, silvery-grey, willow-like leaves and branches packed with bright orange berries 6–8 mm (¼ in) across, from late summer into winter. Only female bushes fruit.
Identification and look-alikes →
Photo: Public domain (iNaturalist) · CC0 (public domain)

Checked against these sources · last reviewed October 2026

Seasons are typical for the middle of the range and move by weeks north and south, and up and down hills.

Educational information only. Never eat a wild plant or mushroom identified from a single photograph or description — confirm with a regional field guide or an experienced forager, and know the poisonous species in your area first.

Carob (St John's bread)

Ceratonia siliqua

When

Typically August – October — August, September, October. Earlier in warm, low country; later in the hills.

Where it grows

Warm, dry, frost-free hills and coastal plains around the Mediterranean, in maquis, open woodland and old terraced groves; wild in the east and long naturalised in the west.

Identification

A broad, round-crowned evergreen tree up to 15 m (50 ft) with leaves 10–20 cm (4–8 in) long, divided into pairs of leaflets. Small flowers grow straight from the trunk and old branches in autumn. The pods are flat, leathery and slightly curved, 10–30 cm (4–12 in) long, ripening from green to dark brown, sweet-smelling, with 10–13 very hard seeds. Most trees are male or female, and only females bear pods.

Look-alikes

Identify the tree as well as the pod: divided leaves, flowers on the trunk, and pods with rock-hard seeds.

Harvest and use

Take pods when they are dark brown and dry, before the winter rains; they are traditionally shaken or knocked down with a long hooked pole. Chew the sweet pulp straight from the pod and spit out the seeds, roast and grind the pods into a cocoa-like flour, or boil the ground pods into a thick, honey-like syrup.

Caution

Many carobs stand in owned groves and on farm terraces: ask before you take pods. The pods hold up to 1.5% tannins, which hinder the digestion of protein in quantity; don't try to eat the seeds. In protected areas such as Italy's national parks, collecting plants is forbidden outside farmed land unless the park allows it.

Carob (St John's bread) at a glance

Also called

St John's bread, locust bean, locust tree; algarrobo (Spain), alfarroba or garrofa (Portugal), garrofer (Catalonia)

Family

Fabaceae (the pea and bean family)

Where it grows

Native to the eastern and central Mediterranean and North Africa — Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, the Levant, Italy and its islands, southern France, Spain, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia and Libya — and long naturalised in the west, from Portugal's Algarve to the Balearics. Spain grows the most.

When to pick

The pods take about a year to ripen and are gathered in late summer and early autumn, before the winter rains, when they have turned dark brown. Trees flower in autumn.

Parts used

The pod pulp, raw, roasted and ground into flour, or boiled into syrup. The seeds give locust bean gum but are too hard to eat.

Is any of it poisonous?

Nothing poisonous, but the pods contain up to 1.5% tannins, which interfere with the body's use of protein.

Questions people ask about carob