can anyone identify this tree from these pods?...it sorta looks like a locust tree but I was too dumb to take a pic of it.

Kentucky coffee tree although I have never seen one in person.

Yes , what he said . the wood used to be highly prized as a specialty wood, buyers once would beg for it. what they made from it i dont know. and i forgot to mention the pioneers used the seeds for substitute coffee.

Yes, Kentucky coffee bean tree. In 1991 at the first Illinois Sportsman of the Year competition, I won the Tree Identification test. The only one I missed was this one.

The seeds in those pods are very hard to destroy. You can clean the green goop off and let them dry for a few days. They will be hard to smash with a hammer. My mother and her siblings called the seeds hot stones. When we were kids we would rub the seeds hard on concrete and burn holes in paper or our brothers with them.

The ground seeds can be used as a coffee substitute.

Keith

thanks guys....the book also says the raw pods and seeds are toxic...so I don't want it around ...

If that is the criteria for letting a plant stay or removing it then you would be mighty busy eliminating plants from your yard! Maybe there is another reason for removing it but if not, I would count up all the accidental poisonings you’ve had due to the tree and let that be your guide for keeping or removing it.

I’ve heard the pod while still green is toxic to cattle, from what I understand it’s the slimy goo that surrounds the seed .

Lol. I've cut trees down for a lot less than that

LOL
Wild cherry leaves can be toxic too, we going to cut all of them down? Most trees produce seeds or leaves that aren’t safe to eat. We can’t go through life scared of the world.