Southern Catalpa tree flower
In mid-June the Catalpa trees are in bloom and the lemon-vanilla fragrance is so pleasant on a hot day. 
The flowers of the the Southern Catalpa have stripes inside – landing strips for pollinating insects.
It is a common tree in the Hudson Valley, I often see them growing by the side of the road and in people’s gardens.
Southern Catalpa tree in bloom
The tree grows to about 60′ high.
Mature tree with large branches
The branches on a mature tree are very thick (2′ or so wide) and curve, sometimes almost touching the ground.
Heat-shaped leaves
The leaves are large, up to 12″ long. A friend explained how these thick leathery leaves are difficult to rake in the fall.
Seed pods
Here are the green seed pods in July. The brown pods are from the previous year. The seed pods are about 15′ long.
Seed pods in winter
The seed pods remain on the trees during the winter
Seed pods hanging from the branches in winter
The Catalpa tree is also known as the ‘Cigar Tree’
Seeds in the snow
Each seed pod is filled with hundreds of tiny seeds with fibrous ‘wings’ for dispersal by wind.
American Robins eating seeds
By winter, most of the seeds have disappeared, but some are still around and provide food for wildlife.
Whilst looking online for information about this tree, I discovered it is the host for the Catalpa Sphinx Moth
Catalpa Sphinx Moth. Image by Wikipedia.org
According to online stories, the caterpillars make excellent bait for fish. Here’s a little more information about the caterpillar
I have not seen any caterpillars on the trees in my area (a result of pesticide use perhaps?)
Hudson Valley Gardens 
Lovely tree. Because I’ve only seen the flowers from a distance, I never knew they were so pretty. Thank you.
Hi Cynthia, thanks for your comment, I’m pleased to hear you enjoyed the close ups of the flowers.
What beautiful blossoms! Great photographs. Hope you do not get damage from pesticides or foreign invasive species. In UK the chestnut trees, also with lovely blossom, are almost wiped out by an invasive species which was perhaps brought over in imported wood. The leaves turn brown and shrivel up. Have a happy Independence Day (4th July)
That’s very bad news about the Horse Chestnut trees in the UK, they are so beautiful. Here in the US the native chestnut trees were killed by a blight (imported) and the Ash trees are being killed by the Emerald Ash Borer beetle (imported). There are a few English Horse Chestnut trees in the Hudson Valley, there are two at Montgomery Place, one on each side of the house.
Your comment is very interesting re the native chestnut trees. Here in UK the elms are wiped out, as you know. Other species of trees are also under threat, I think Ash is one of them.
Yes I remember a row of Elm trees being cut down at my school, it was awful. President Obama has recently setup a committee to investigate the death of pollinating insects, I am watching to see if they can/will do anything about the problem. Any political activity in the UK re. the pollinator die-off?