48 



ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY CIRCULAR 51 



Fig. 49. — Catalpa produces a profusion of white, showy flowers in the 

 spring and long, slender beans in the fall. The leaves (inset) are large and 

 heart shaped. 



the shorter leaves of common catalpa are 5-6 inches long and 

 4-5 inches wide. The light green leaves of common catalpa and 

 the dark green leaves of western catalpa are smooth above and 

 paler and hairy beneath. The perfect flowers are white with 

 bright purple spots, about 2 inches long, and in open, 8-inch clus- 

 ters. They are several-flowered on western catalpa and many- 

 flowered on common catalpa. The long, slender, beanlike pods 

 have thick walls on western catalpa and thin walls on common 

 catalpa. They measure 8-20 inches long and about V-2 inch wide. 

 They contain several light brown seeds, each with fringed wings. 

 The light, grayish-brown bark of catalpa becomes furrowed 

 and rough with age. 



Western catalpa, native in the southern half of Illinois, is 

 suited for background plantings in large gardens. It is relatively 

 resistant to injury by ice and wind. Umbrella catalpa, a variety 

 of common catalpa which grows 6-15 feet tall, has an umbrella- 

 like crown. Catalpa trees are frequently attacked and defoliated 

 by the catalpa sphinx. Occasionally they are affected by pow- 



