# Take care of your hands



## RNprepper (Apr 5, 2014)

I was out gathering Palo Verde beans ( a desert legumous tree) this week. They are absolutely delectable - you would think you were eating edamame.They dehydrate well, and also freeze well. But they need to be gathered in a very short window of time, before they become tough and bitter. The trees can be spiny and prickly, and sure enough, I left my gloves at home when I happened upon a particularly loaded tree. I ended up with a lot of scratches and a cut on my thumb. Nothing big, but a reminder that hands are so important to all aspects of survival. Cracked skin or infected wounds would greatly affect ones ability to work effectively, besides contributing to general grumpiness. I need to stock up on extra work gloves for my SHTF supplies, as well as extra lotion and sunscreen.


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## nephilim (Jan 20, 2014)

I've found that welders gloves are the best for longevity, and should be treated like a knife sheath. I've had the same pair of gloves for nearly 8 years, and through thick and thin, they've survived a lot and been great for me!


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## paraquack (Mar 1, 2013)

Can you post pix of tree and beans, please.


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## RNprepper (Apr 5, 2014)

Yup, when I get a chance. Palo verdes (AZ state tree, BTW) are the ones with the green bark that are all blooming yellow right now. You can look out any window and see them, I would bet. Mesquites are also blooming yellow, but don't have the green bark. There are several varieties of palo verdes, and they will set beans at different times. Drive down the roads right now and you will see trees with dangling pods. You want to gather them when they are still moist and sweet tasting. Some varieties are sweeter than others. But the beans inside need to be tender. They harden up pretty fast. You only have a week to gather once they are getting ready. Then you have to shell them to get the green beans out of the pods. DELICIOUS! I use them in salads, soups, stir fry. The young green beans will rehydrate well after drying. BUT you cannot use the mature, dry beans. They are as hard as rocks and cooking for days does not really soften them up real well. It might be possible to grind into flour, but mesquite beans are much more superior for that. I did try to cook the dry palo verde beans one year, but as I said, it took a long, long time and far too much fuel. To boot, we all got a little digestive upset from them as well. However, as green vegetables, they are unbeatable. (Pack rats are the only ones I know that will eat dry palo verde beans.)


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## RNprepper (Apr 5, 2014)

Practical Biology: science for everyone: The Palo Verde: foraging and life history

This link shows both pods and beans. Some varieties only have 1 or 2 beans per pod. I think there are cultivated varieties that do not form pods at all, as they can be messy in landscaping. Some cultivated varieties may also be thornless. I know on our property, we have some with a lot of thorns and some that aren't too bad. We have 2 varieties - one with small (and sweeter) beans that have 3-4 beans/pod (like the one in the picture). And also the larger beans in shorter pods. (A little less sweet, but more volume as the beans are bigger.)

Now is the weekend to get them if you are interested. I gathered some early ones last weekend, but there are a lot more coming. beans will also mature at different times at different elevations. Catalina will probably be a couple of weeks behind Tucson, so it stretches out the harvest.


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## spokes (Feb 22, 2014)

Let me add that I keep a stock of Bag Balm around . IMHO there is very little that is better for moisturizing and toughening skin. I used to recommend it to the caregivers of elderly family members, especially ones that were bedfast for use on pressure points. Now I use it on my hands and feet especially in the winter months when skin is extra dry. During the summer months it's great for use when you start developing callouses even while wearing work gloves. About the only thing negative you can say about it is that it has a distinctive 'petroleum' odor to it. But if it works on a tender cow's udder to soothe and toughen the skin, it will work on human skin as well. 

Good point about extra work gloves, RNprepper.


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