Catalpa bignonioides
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Catalpa
Bignoniaceae
Plant Specifics
| Form: | Tree | |
| Size: | 40-50 (70) ft tall by to 35 ft wide | |
| Life Span: | Long-lived perennial | |
| Flower Color: | White | |
| Fruit Color: | Brown | |
| Phenology: | Deciduous | |
| Noted for: | Showy flowers, Interesting foliage |
Landscaping
| Recommended Uses: | Specimen or shade tree. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Considerations: | The foul-smelling crushed leaves, flower litter, seed pod litter, and root suckers can create a maintenance problem in residential landscapes. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Propagation: | Seed and cuttings. Seedlings can sometimes be harvested from beneath mature trees. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Availability: | Native nurseries, Seed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Light: | Full Sun, Part Shade | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Moisture Tolerance: |
always floodedextremely dry |
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| (Somewhat moist, no flooding ----- to ----- Somewhat long very dry periods) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Moisture Tolerance: | Somewhat moist, no flooding ----- to ----- Somewhat long very dry periods | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Salt Water Flooding Tolerance: | Not salt tolerant of inundation by salty or brackish water. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Salt Spray/ Salty Soil Tolerance: | Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Soil or other substrate: | Loam, Sand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Soil pH: | Slightly acidic to calcareous | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ecology
| Wildlife: |
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| Insects: | Larval host for catalpa sphinx moth (Ceratomia catalpae) and tersa sphinx (Xylophanes tersa). Attracts various pollinators including butterflies and bees. | |
| Native Habitats: | Dry hammocks, dry hardwood forests. |
Distribution and Planting Zones
Natural Range in Florida
USDA Zones
Suitable to grow in:
8A 8B 9A 9B
USDA zones are based on minimum winter temperatures
Comments
| Ethnobotany: | Extremely rot resistant wood was use for fence posts and rails. Wood was utilized where its soft, straight-grained, and low shrinkage properties were valuable. Occasional wood pieces and furniture parts were fashioned from catalpa. Sometimes grown to attract insects such as catawba worm (larva of the catalpa sphinx moth) which is used for fish bait. |