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approach of winter to a rusty brown, again becoming a bright 

 green during the first few warm days of spring. 



Hardy Catalpa. 



The hardy catalpa is a tree that has been planted quite gen- 

 erally throughout the state and most abundantly throughout 

 the central section, where the well-cared-for plantations have 

 proved very profitable. The wood of the catalpa is light brown 

 in color and light in weight, but when seasoned is very dur- 

 able in contact with the soil. Its principal use is for posts 

 and poles. 



Range and Habit of Growth. The hardy catalpa is found 

 growing naturally in southern Illinois and Indiana, western 

 Kentucky and Tennessee, southeastern Missouri, northern 

 Arkansas, western Louisiana, and eastern Texas. In its nat- 

 ural distribution it is a tree that frequently attains a height 

 of from 60 to 80 feet, with a diameter often measuring 3% or 

 4 feet. In Kansas it is a small-sized tree, seldom exceeding 40 

 feet in height or 2 feet in diameter. It is a tree that is well 

 adapted to the soil and climatic conditions of the eastern half 

 of the state, but it is not a tree that can be recommended for 

 the western portion. It should be grown in pure stand and 

 planted only in deep, fertile, cultivated soil. The soil require- 

 ments of the catalpa are similar to the soil requirements of 

 corn, and any soil capable of producing a good yield of corn 

 will produce a good growth of catalpas. 



System of Management. One-year-old seedling trees should be 

 planted in rows 7 feet apart and set about 3 or 3 1/2 feet apart 

 in the rows. These may be planted in alternate lister furrows. 

 When set the roots may be partly covered with a spade by hand 

 and the furrows later filled in with a cultivator. The trees 

 should be given at least two seasons* cultivation. Thorough 

 cultivation during this time is very necessary to keep down 

 the growth of weeds and to stimulate as rapid a growth of the 

 trees as possible. By the third summer the trees should have 

 attained sufficient size to shade the ground completely and to 

 keep down all weed growth. Under these conditions they will 

 make a rapid growth. When from 14 to 18 years of age they 

 will have attained their financial maturity, and should then 

 be cut. The cutting should be done in the winter and the 

 ground should be cleared at one cutting. This will allow a 

 growth of sprouts from the stumps to make a second crop, 



