Thorny locust is a tree.
It’s a very stubborn sort of tree; once it gets its roots down somewhere, it’s really hard to get rid of. It’s definitely a member of an invasive species. And it’s thorny. A lot of people don’t like it.
It also makes fantastic fence posts; untreated wood lasts many years even in wet ground. And it makes extremely good firewood; will keep you warm all night and all winter. And it’s arguably a nitrogen fixer, feeding other plants around it.
So: not to everybody’s taste. But certainly has its good points.
– I developed a liking for it years ago, while simultaneously trying to keep it from taking over an old vineyard and using its fenceposts to hold up the vineyard trellis.