Northern Catalpa (Catalpa speciosa)
Kingdom: Plantae
(Unranked): Angiosperms
(Unranked): Eudicots
(Unranked): Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Bignoniaceae
Genus: Catalpa
Species: C. speciosa
Binomial name: Catalpa speciosa
Common name: Northern catalpa, Hardy catalpa, Western catalpa, Cigar tree, and Catawba-tree.
Catalpa speciosa is a species of Catalpa native to the mid western United States. It is a medium-sized, deciduous tree growing to 15-30 meters tall and 12 meters wide. It has a trunk up to 1 m diameter, with brown to gray bark maturing into hard plates or ridges. The leaves are deciduous, opposite (or whorled), large, heart shaped, 20-30 cm long and 15-20 cm broad, pointed at the tip and softly hairy beneath.
The flowers are 3-6 cm across, trumpet shaped, white with yellow stripes and purple spots inside; they grow in panicles of 10-30. It flowers in New Plymouth during December and January.
The catalpa tree is the last tree to grow leaves in the spring. The leaves generally do not color in autumn before falling; instead, they either fall abruptly after the first frost, or turn a slightly yellow-brown before dropping off.
The winter twigs of northern catalpa are like those of few other trees, having sunken leaf scars that resemble suction cups. Their whorled arrangement (three scars per node) around the twigs is another diagnostic.
The fruit is a long, thin legume-like pod, 20-40 cm long and 10-12 mm diameter; it often stays attached to tree during winter (and can be mistaken for brown icicles). The pod contains numerous flat, light brown seeds with two papery wings.}
The wood is soft, like white pine, and light. It also does not rot easily; in earlier years in the U. S it was used for fence posts and less than successfully as railroad ties.
More modern uses that highlight the wood's beautiful grain include furniture, interior trim and cabinetry.
This tree is growing on the stream side of the Te Henui stream south of Spencer Place before Adams point.
Underside of a leaf
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