

Give them space to see them at their best. They look stylish in modern backyards when used as part of a geometrical arrangement, in rows or a matrix. Pollarded – or ‘lollipop’ – catalpa can be used to create vertical focal points. It works well with bright red dahlias and orange tagetes for an exotic look. Daisy flowers such as Rudbeckia and Leucathemum make lovely late summer companions.Ĭatalpa x eurubescens ‘Purpurea’ has purple-black young leaves in the spring that slowly turn dark green as they age. ‘Aurea’ team up well with purple-flowered perennials like Salvia nemorosa and Allium ‘Globemaster’.

‘Aurea’ for example, a distance of 15-20ft from the house would be sensible.Ĭatalpa’s foliage offers bold contrast with other leaf shapes and flower colors. The zingy yellow leaves of C. You also need to consider the wide, round shape of catalpa’s canopy.

Despite its preference for moist soil, catalpa is considered a low water demand tree according to the Royal Horticultural Society, who recommend to plant low water uptake trees at a distance of half their eventual height from your house or other permanent structures like a pool. When grown as standalone specimen trees, catalpa has lots of wow-factor, but they’re fast-growing trees so watch for overhead wires.
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You can also restrict the size of the trees by using the horticultural pruning technique of pollarding.Ĭatalpa bignonioides Aurea How to use catalpa in your yard The wild forms grow huge, while the cultivated varieties are much smaller. Its nectar-rich flowers are attractive to bees and other pollinators. When it comes to choosing the right catalpa for your backyard, first consider what space you have to grow one. The ‘Indian’ part of the name refers to Native North Americans and it has been suggested that a European botanist named the tree after the tribe of Catawba, although he spelled the name ‘catalpa’ incorrectly.Ĭatalpa is among the most beautiful of all fast-growing flowering trees, and because its showy flowers appear from the end of May, it can act as a bridging plant between spring and summer-blooming trees. Commonly known as the Indian bean tree, catalpa is not from the Indian sub-continent, nor does it produce edible beans. There are approximately 10 species of catalpa found naturally in East Asia, the Caribbean, and the eastern and south-eastern US.
