RERAMIC STUDIO 
83 
CATAWBA TREE 
Adelaide A. Robiucau 
ONE of the showiest and earhest trees to Ijlossoni is the 
Catawba tree. The flowers two or three inches across 
are in conspicuous spikes resenibHng in general effect the horse 
chestnut, but the flower itself is quite different. It is of a 
creamy white with markings in reddish purple toward the 
centre, from which two yellow streaks spread on to the lower 
part of the corolla. 
The scale like calyx is green streaked with purple so as to 
look almost brown. The anthers and pistils are yellow and 
purple, the odor, similar to that of an orchid. The leaves 
grow in- a whirl about the flower cluster, usually ten to thirteen 
varj-ing from three inches to sometimes ten inches in length 
and to seven in width. 
The flower itself is ver^' graceful and decorative, and lends 
itself to almost any style of treatment. The details of flower, 
pistil, stamens, etc., will suggest manv simpler and more con- 
ventional designs for smaller pieces. 
These details of the flower can easily be arranged into 
simple motifs, the calyx, stamens and pistils especialty suggest 
interesting decorative forms — trj^ arranging them in black and 
white as suggested in Mr. Froehlich's articles on design. The 
veining of the leaf suggests a fine background design in gold or 
color, as do also the odd markings of the corolla and the jjecu- 
liar spotting on the branch where the old leaves have fallen off. 
The centre arrangement of stamens and pistils with the flat- 
tened circle about it, show^n in the detail drawing, makes an ex- 
cellent form to use in a simple conventional border in mono- 
chrome, and the calyx from every point of view is interesting. 
We give here two arrangements for salad bowls. 
In using the first border the outside ground of bowl 
should be left white, bands should be gold outlined in lalack, 
light space between upper bands, also flower design, a pale 
cream tint with green gold outlines and green gold wavj^ lines 
in background, two bands behind rows of dots to be deeper 
yellow spots and marking should be in gold. Inside of bowl 
may be tinted apple green or cream with band of gold, one- 
eighth of an inch wide, about a quarter of an inch from rim, 
outline this band in black. 
For the second design tint the outside with a cream ground, 
dark part of ground in 
^/\^ brown bronze, design in 
green gold outlined in 
black or in yellow brown 
lustre outlined in gold, 
bands the same. The in- 
side of bowl should be a 
rich tint of yellow brown 
lustre. 
