FLOWERING TREES AND SHRUBS 



349 



Name. 



Catalpa 



Country or 



Origin and 



Natural Order. 



Bignoniacese 



Colour 



AND 



Season. 



*C. bignonioides (Syn 

 C. syringiefolia) 



Introduced from 



North America 



in 1726 



General Remarks. 



Creamy 



white 



blotched 



with 



yellow, 



and spotted 



with purple 



in the 



throat. 



This genus of large deciduous 

 trees is represented in both 

 the eastern and western hemi- 

 spheres, and contains about a 

 dozen species. Only five of 

 these are at present in culti- 

 vation in Britain orare known 

 to be hardy, two being natives 

 of North America and three 

 of China. The Catalpas are 

 some of the most striking and 

 beautiful of all hardy trees, 

 both in regard to foHage and 

 to flower. The leaves are 

 large and bold in outline, 

 and the flowers borne in large 

 terminal panicles towards the 

 end of summer. Catalpas 

 love a rich soil and abundant 

 moisture. They are particu- 

 larly well adapted for plant- 

 ing on the margins of ponds 

 and water-courses. All the 

 species have this peculiarity ; 

 they never form a terminal 

 winter bud. In consequence 

 of this, every shoot branches 

 at its apex into two or three 

 every spring, with the result 

 that the trees naturally ac- 

 quire a broad, spreading 

 habit. This is especially 

 apparent in the case of iso- 

 lated trees growing on 

 lawns — a position, it may 

 be mentioned, in which 

 Catalpas are seen to ex- 

 ceptional advantage. In the 

 forests of North America, 

 where they are drawn up 

 by other trees, the Cat- 

 alpas occasionally attain to 

 heights of 50 feet to 100 

 feet. In gardens it may 

 sometimes be advisable to 

 help them to reach a moder- 

 ate height, by keeping them 

 to a single lead when young. 

 All the species can be in- 

 creased by cuttings of the 

 roots, or ofthe fairly matured 

 leafy growths. 



This species is by far the com- 

 monest and best known of 

 the Catalpas in Britain. It 

 does not often attain a stature 

 of more than 30 feet, although 

 in its native woods it is met 

 vrith twice as high. The 

 broadly ovate leaves are in 

 healthy trees of mature age 



