Allergy Information

Prosopis can be a serious offender in the southcentral and southwestern regions of the United States. The plants produce considerable airborne pollen.

Genus Details

The mesquites are deciduous trees or shrubs. The leaves have many small leaflets, either very close together, or spread apart, depending on the species. On one of the species within this genus, Prosopis alba, small flowers which are green to white to yellow appear, along with pods that are eight inches long. The plants have spines that are up to a few inches long. The wood is often burned as a flavoring agent in barbeques, providing a smokey addition to many foods.

Pollen Description

Pollen grains are prolate, subprolate, or prolate-spheroidal; the amb triangular or rounded triangular and 3-colporate.

Pollen grains are typically 30-36 micrometers.

Genus Distribution

The shaded areas on the map indicates where the genus has been observed in the United States.

- Native, observed in a county 

- Introduced, observed in a county 

- Rarely observed