Mesquite (Prosopis glandulosa) has quite a reputation in Fort Sumner. Local ranchers and farmers consider the Mesquite bush to be a nuisance bush or tree. Its seasonal removal and active herbicidal spraying is common throughout this region. But for the interned Diné (Navajo) and Ndé (Mescalero Apache) this was a tree of survival. Fort Sumner was called Hwéeldi by the Diné for it means “the place of suffering.” This area was completely unfamiliar to them. The Diné were sheep herders and small-scale farmers and the Ndé were hunters and gatherers. So for the Diné and Ndé, this tree became beloved for providing for their needs all year long.
Food dispensed by the U.S. Army was scarce and often rotten and unsafe to eat. So, the seeds from the long brown pods could be dried and ground into a powder to provide a rich source of vegetable protein. Dried seed pods with seeds could also be steeped as a tea that drank like coffee.
Even though trees were located far away on the one million-acre Bosque Redondo Indian Reservation, roots could be dug up (albeit with great difficulty and without proper tools) and brought back to the encampment to be used for firewood. According to Notah Draper, Diné, "Getting firewood was the worst problem because there was hardly any wood of any kind, and it was very hard to get. There was some sort of bush called nááztání (mesquite). Its roots were dug out and brought home—sometimes for many miles." Mesquite wood is a very hard wood that burns quite well for a long time. These roots also served as a rudimentary framework for a dugout shelter. And of course, if the trees were left alone to grow to maturity, the shade provided a reprieve from the blistering 110-degree summer heat. Yes, summers were and still are very hot here.
Be careful if you should encounter the elongated spines that grow out from the branches. How grateful were the Diné and Ndé to have these 2-inch to 3-inch needles to sew clothing, to help secure coverings to go over shelters. These spines were also used to tend to the injuries that resulted from daily labor, attacks from the Comanche, or from abuse at the hands of U.S. Army guards, which was not uncommon.
