Southern Catalpa (Catalpa bignonioides): Essential Guide In autumn, mature catalpa seed pods turn brown and often hang on the tree through late fall and into winter. Today's @marthastewartblog looks at some of the seeds, berries, and cones of How did Catalpa get their name? In North America there are two native species of catalpa: Southern catalpa, C. bignonioides and Northern catalpa, C. speciosa. Southern catalpa is native to southern MS, Northern catalpa Catalpa speciosa The Morton Arboretum