Catalpa or Catawba
Story by Joyce Lavene
Catawba, catalpa or cigar tree (its nickname) is part of the trumpet vine family. You can see the resemblance because they both have those large hanging beans this time of year. It is native to this area as well as the Caribbean and East Asia.
It’s a nice, big tree with large, three lobed leaves which are heart shaped. They also have pretty white or yellow flowers. The hanging beans are actually seed pods which will disperse seeds using the wind.
While these trees grow here naturally, many gardeners plant them for their showy appearance, attractive shape and easy growing. In 10 years, one of the trees will be 20 feet tall! Bear that in mind if you decide to plant one.
The name comes from the Catawba Native American tribe. The name catalpa actually came about as a spelling error that has never been corrected. As so often happens with Native American names, the botanist who described the tree wrote it down incorrectly.
The rules of botanical naming state that the spelling used in the formal scientific description have to be retained for the name. So it remains catalpa, except in those areas where the tree is native. Most people here, for instance, know the tree as the catawba tree.
The cigar tree nickname is for the large bean pods which hang down, green at the beginning then slowly turning brown.
Probably the only problem with this tree are the caterpillars, named for the tree, catalpa sphinx moth. When there are large infestations of caterpillars, the tree can become defoliated, even die if the trend continues for several years. The tree produces leaves quickly after the caterpillars are done munching but for many homeowners, this is a nuisance they can live without.
Let’s hear it for bending the rules a little when experts know a mistake has been made and changing the spelling for this very pretty tree to reflect its heritage!
