CATALPA

Updated 05-May-2020.

Mondo shtuff from around the internet, all about CATALPA!

Catalpa Scop. | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science: This genus is accepted, and its native range is Utah to Central & E. U.S.A., Caribbean, China.

Catalpas (Genus Catalpa): Catalpa, commonly called catalpa or catawba, is a genus of flowering plants in the family Bignoniaceae, native to warm temperate and subtropical regions of North America, the Caribbean, and East Asia. (Source: Wikipedia, ”, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catalpa, CC BY-SA 3.0 . Photo: (c) Dendroica cerulea, some rights reserved (CC BY))

My botty best at summarizing from Wikipedia: catalpa is a genus of flowering plants in the family Bignoniaceae . they are fast growers and a 10-year-old sapling may stand about 6 metres (20 ft) tall in late summer or autumn the fruit appear; they are siliques about 20–50 centimetres (8–20 in) long, full of small flat seeds, each with two thin wings to aid in wind dispersal . northern and southern catalpas are very similar in appearance, but the northern species has slightly larger leaves, flowers, and bean pods . flowering starts after 275 growing degree days. Catalpa ovata from china Giovanni Antonio Scopoli established the genus Catalpa in 1777 . when caterpillars are numerous, infested trees may be completely defoliated . Severe defoliation over several consecutive years can some dedicated anglers plant catalpa mini-orchards for their own private source of “catawba-worms” in the southern states . the caterpillars are an excellent live bait for fishing