Catalpa catalpa catalpa!

Say it three times fast.

Catalpa tree pods in the Ainsworth Linear Arboretum, August 2021

If you have never heard of this tree, you were like me a few months ago. Right now these trees are showing themselves, kinda like how a mimosa or Persian silk tree puts out its magnum opus pink flowers, or the spring bloom of the horsechestnut (check out the ALA ones on the NW corner of 7th and Ainsworth). Your eyes wake up to them, noticing them in their glory.

The catalpa tree is currently growing out its enormous long pods, shaped in contrast to its bright green simple heart-shaped leaves. These dangling pods are why the tree is also known as a cigar tree or a bean tree; their extended pods will drape down and turn brown into the fall. From those of you familiar with Carolina rivers, the southern catalpa is apparently called a Catawba tree, as the words, river, and tree have close exchange.

There are several catalpa on the ALA; the one I photographed here is on the SE corner of 33rd and Ainsworth (as you can see from the breadcrumbs in the picture). Thank you to those neighbors for growing these beauties.