434 PRACTICAL ARBORICULTURE 
CATALPA SCRUBBIOSA. 
There are a great number of Catalpa trees in St. Louis, but after two 
months’ careful search I failed to find any Catalpa speciosa, except a few quite 
small specimens of young trees. 
At the Missouri Botanical Gardens, Mr. Shaw had planted several long 
avenues with Catalpa bignonioides from the south, but most of these have been 
destroyed during recent years, on account of their inferiority. 
Dr. Trelease has made some recent plantings of Catalpa speciosa, but they are 
yet quite small. ; 
A physician from Kansas who was attending the World's Fair, noticing 
the number of these southern trees, and being asked what they were, re- 
plied, “They are Catalpa scrubbiosa.” This is a far more suitable name than 
the ones given by early botanists. ; 
There is nothing descriptive or modifying by a repetition of the specific 
name for one of a sub-variety, as Catalpa Catalpa, although Catalpa bignonoides 
would indicate that the flowers of this variety resemble those of the bignonia 
or trumpet creeper. 
Catalpa scrubbiosa describes those innumerable mongrels of low strag- 
gling habit, much branched, very short trunk, and productive of immense 
quantities of seed, which are easily gathered. These trees have been distrib- 
uted throughout the world through the carelessness of nurserymen and seeds- 
men. 
The vast number of these scrub trees in the United States have caused 
public opinion to be formed adverse to the Catalpa speciosa and this has been 
extremely difficult to overcome. 
As an illustration for one state—\While I was in California, four years 
ago, on a visit to the California State University at Berkeley, I found on the 
Campus two Catalpa trees as specimens — one was speciosa, but was labeled 
bignonoides, the other was labeled speciosa, but was plainly the southern 
variety. 
Many seeds or trees of this inferior scrubbiosa had been sent out to various 
parts of the state, and supposed to be speciosa. 
On the Insane Asylum grounds at Stockton were long avenues of scriubbiosa 
which had been sent from the University. 
No wonder the people of California hesitate to recognize the merits of 
this important tree which might be of immense value to the western coast region. 
During the past winter, 1905-6, I have through several members of the 
