Catalpa

catalpa (kətăl`pə): see bignonia.

---

catalpa

Any of 11 species of trees in the genus Catalpa (family Bignoniaceae), native to eastern Asia, eastern North America, and the West Indies. Catalpas have large, attractive leaves and showy white, yellowish, or purplish flowers. The catalpa fruit is a long cylindrical pod bearing numerous seeds with white tufts of hair at each end. The common catalpa, C. bignonioides, yields a durable timber and is one of the most widely planted ornamental species.

---

catalpa

any bignoniaceous tree of the genus Catalpa of North America and Asia, having large leaves, bell-shaped whitish flowers, and long slender pods

---

Catalpa 

a genus of plants of the family Bignoniaceae, consisting of deciduous trees with broad leaves. The flowers, which are white with spotted insides, are gathered into large racemes or panicles. The corolla is campanulate and two-lipped. The fruit is an elongated pod, measuring up to 40 cm long; it has numerous seeds bearing tufts of soft hair at each end. Eleven species are distributed from East Asia to North America. In the southern European region of the USSR, the southern catalpa, or Indian bean (Catalpa bignonioides), is the most frequently cultivated plant of this genus. The species C. Bungei, C. speciosa, and C. ovata are also grown there. Catalpa is propagated from seeds, cuttings, and roots. It grows well in moist soils. It is a photo-philic plant. The wood of these trees is light, soft, and durable. The oil obtained from the seeds of the southern catalpa contains eleostearic acids (approximately 30 percent); when it is placed in the light, it dries quickly and hardens. All species of catalpa are ornamentals.