THE MAGNOLIA AND TULIP TREE 



of three on the stem, or opposite each other. 

 The btids are short and inconspicuous, with loose 

 scales. The fruit is in long pods, hanging on 

 the tree till spring. 



The catalpa is an attractive tree in winter 

 on account of tlie long slender pods which 

 hang from the tips of the branches, and give 

 the stout stems a light effect otherwise lacking, 

 for taken alone they are coarse and bluntly 

 moulded and very rigid. The name catalpa 

 comes from an Indian word meaning winged 

 head; and as the catalpa has dense, heavy 

 ■foliage in summer and suggests solidity rather 

 than the light effect " winged " conveys to one's 

 mind, it is just possible that the Indians referred 

 to its winter aspect when they gave it the 

 name. The buds open very late in the spring, 

 giving the tree a lifeless appearance long after 

 other trees are green. 



The value of the catalpa as a timber tree is 

 fast becoming recognized. It grows rapidly, 

 with an average increase of an inch a year in 

 the diameter of the trunk, and the wood is very 

 durable in contact with the soil ; when used 

 for railroad ties it has been known to remain 

 sound for over twenty years. Its practical 

 value is shown by the experience of an Illinois 

 farmer who planted five hundred acres of these 



IS9 



