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suited, and for railway ties for which it has proved too soft. The 
other American species, Catalpa hignonioides, probably originated some- 
where in the southeastern part of the country, but it has been so 
spread by escapes from planted trees that it is no longer possible to 
determine the location of its first home. It was for many years one 
of the common planted trees in the middle and southern states, and 
specimens are still occasionally seen in southern New England. Now, 
however, when one wants to plant a Catalpa-tree in this country he 
finds in nurseries only C. speciosa. The more southern species is a 
smaller tree with shorter-pointed leaves; it grows less rapidly and blooms 
two or three weeks later than the eastern species. The flowers are 
smaller, in shorter and more compact clusters, and the pods are smaller 
with thicker walls. There is a dwarf form of Catalpa hignonioides 
(var. nana) which grafted on the stem of one of the tree Catalpas has 
in recent years been largely planted in this country for the supposed 
decoration of gardens which are more or less formal in character. It 
is not known where the dwarf plant originated, and if it has ever 
flowered the fact is not known at the Arboretum. The fact that it is 
universally sold in American nurseries under the name of Catalpa Bun- 
gei causes confusion for that name properly belongs to a tree from 
northern China. This Chinese tree has narrow, long-pointed dark green 
leaves, small yellowish flowers and small pods. It has been growing in 
the Arboretum since 1904, and was perfectly hardy until the winter of 
1916-17 when one of the trees was killed to the ground and others were 
more or less injured. They have now recovered, but this Catalpa has 
not yet flowered in the Arboretum. Compared with the American 
species it has no value as an ornamental tree. Another Chinese species, 
Catalpa ovata, was sent many years ago to this country from Japan 
where it has long been cultivated. It is a small tree with compara- 
tively small, dark green leaves, many-flowered clusters of small, yellow- 
ish spotted flowers, and slender pods. This tree, which will grow in 
regions too cold for the American species, has been somewhat planted 
in the United States, although as an ornamental tree it does not have 
much to recommend it. In this country it has proved most valuable 
as one of the parents of the natural hybrid, Catalpa hyhrida, which 
appeared several years ago in the Teas Nursery at Baysville, Indiana, 
and is often called C. Teasii and “Teas’ Hybrid Catalpa.’’ This is a 
fast-growing and hardy tree with flowers like those of C. hignonioides, 
the American parent, although smaller but in larger clusters, and 
leaves in shape resembling those of C. ovata. The two species intro- 
duced by Wilson from central China, Catalpa Duclouxii and C. Fargesii, 
are still living but give little promise of ever becoming valuable addi- 
tions to the number of summer-flowering trees which can be success- 
fully used for the decoration of New England gardens. 
Some good shrubs. Although notes are published year after year in 
these Bulletins about new or little known shrubs as they flower, the 
Arboretum is constantly asked for lists of the best new shrubs for 
northern gardens; and in response to this request it now submits another 
list of comparatively new plants. The plants in this list are hardy in 
southern New England and the middle states. The two Rhododendrons, 
however, cannot be grown in soil impregnated with lime. Several of 
these plants cannot, unfortunately, be found in American nurseries; they 
