96 FOREST TREES. 
by violent winds when growing in exposed situations. 
The leaves are rather tardy in appearing in spring, 
and are cast with the first frosts of autumn. 
The Catalpa is easily naturalized where the winters 
are not too severe, young plants springing up readily 
from the scattered seeds of older trees. The wood is 
light, and takes a brilliant polish. It resembles that 
of the Butternut, but is more durable. Posts of the 
Catalpa, well seasoned when set, have been proved by 
experiment to be very lasting. In Southern Illinois 
it is used for that purpose in preference to any other 
timber. I have been assured by credible persons that 
posts are still in use that have stood for forty years 
without the appearance of decay. In thick forests in 
that region it reaches the height of eighty or ninety 
feet. Its cultivation, to a limited extent, may be 
recommended on account of its durability, the rapidity 
of its growth, and the ease with which it is raised 
from seed. 
The seeds are contained in a long, slender pod; 
they are thin, flat, and enveloped in a long, narrow, 
membraneous wing. If sown in spring, and covered 
thinly, they vegetate readily, and the young trees 
transplant easily. 
CELTIS—NETTLE TREE, HACKBERRY. 
Natural Order, Urticacee. 
Calyx, five or six parted, persistent; stamens, five 
orsix; ovary, one-celled, with a single ovule; stigmas, 
