lect his own supply, if possible, since seed from certain undesirable 

 species, more prolific than the hardy catalpa, has been sold extensively 

 by dealers as genuine. The seed ripens in the autumn and the pods 

 ordinarily hang on the trees all winter. It is well, however, to gather 

 the pods as soon as the leaves fall, since some of them are likely to 

 open and drop their seeds. The seed should be kept over winter in 

 the pods, in cool, dry storage. Sowing should be done early in the 

 spring, but not until the ground has become w r arm. Drills should be 

 made in well-prepared, mellow soil, and the seeds sown a half inch 

 apart and covered to a depth of about 1 inch. The rows should be 

 far enough apart to allow thorough cultivation. Under average con- 

 ditions the seedlings will grow 12 to 24 inches in height during the 

 first summer, and will be suitable for planting the following spring. 

 One pound of hardy catalpa seed contains nearly 20,000 seeds, 

 which will be sufficient to sow about 8,000 linear feet of drills. Be- 

 tween 40 and 75 per cent of the fresh seed should germinate, and a 

 pound may be expected to produce about 12,000 one-year-old plants. 



PLANTING. 



The planting site should be prepared by plowing and harrowing 

 in the spring, and there is an advantage in growing a field crop on 

 the site for one season before planting. It is usually advisable to 

 plant 1-year-old stock in the spring. In the South, however, where 

 the winters are mild, catalpa may be planted with safety in the fall, 

 after one season's growth in the nursery. 



Proper spacing of the trees in the plantation depends to some 

 extent upon regional and site conditions. East of the Mississippi 

 catalpa may be planted 6 by 8 feet or 8 feet apart each way, but in 

 the plains region it will be well to set the trees 4 by 8 feet or 6 feet 

 apart each way. A spacing of 4 by 4 feet is advisable only when 

 early thinnings can surely be made. In general this very close spac- 

 ing should not be used, because the catalpa requires considerable 

 room for lateral root development, and crowding will tend to lessen 

 the vitality of the trees and to lower the rate of growth. 



In raising catalpa the object is to obtain the best growth and most 

 perfect form in the shortest possible time. To accomplish this a 

 relatively wide spacing of the trees, supplemented by a limited 

 amount of artificial pruning, is necessary. 



While catalpa has thus far been planted chiefly in pure stands, an 

 associate tree -may prove desirable in the Middle West. This should 

 be of a tolerant species and slower growing than the catalpa. This 

 associate tree, or " filler," would complete the crown cover and would 

 assist in pruning the catalpa and in forcing straight upward growth. 

 Two species that are well adapted for planting with catalpa in the 

 West are Russian mulberry and Osage orange. 



rrir 



