Catalpa

ka-tal'pa, a genus of deciduous trees, found in the northern hemisphere and belonging to the trumpet-creeper family. There are seven or eight species, four of which are hardy in temperate regions. The species best known in the United States flourishes from New England southward. A second species, the showy catalpa, is native from southern Illinois and Indiana to the Gulf. It is cultivated as a park tree as far north as central Minnesota. In southern latitudes it grows to be a tree 100 feet in height. The leaves are broad and heart-shaped at the base. The flowers are tubular, bell-shaped, and two-lipped, with a total spread of about two inches. They are showy and are succeeded by long ornamental pods that hang on during the winter time. The wood is soft and close grained, but it is as durable as that of the walnut and chestnut. Catalpa fence posts are known to have lasted eighty-five years. The wood is light and is worked easily. It does not check in drying. The Indians of the Ohio Valley are said to have preferred a catalpa log to all others for canoe making. Experts in forestry recommend catalpa planting for wood lots. A thrifty young tree is large enough for a fence post at the age of fifteen years, and large enough for a railroad tie at twenty. Several railroad companies are said to be setting out catalpas for the latter purpose. The catalpa may be propagated by seeds and by cuttings.