"Jimbo156" wrote in message
om...
A neighbor has a tree that is about 8 ft. tall that was covered with
large purple blossoms in early spring (in S. Texas)...now the blossoms
hve gone, but there are bean pods hanging straight down that are
probably 4 in. long. Any idea what it is?

Sounds like wisteria, which is a vine that can be pruned to look like a
tree, or which may have taken over a small tree as it's trellis. It's blooms
are shaped sort of like grape clusters, which are beautiful, fragrant,
profuse in spring, and sporadic thereafter. Flowers are replaced by a 'bean
pod' with flat dark seeds in it, which bursts when ripened and dried,
sending the seeds several feet away. A lovely but Incredibly destructive
and invasive vine, if not carefully and constantly controlled, at least in
the south.