Magnolia Gallery

I have been doing a lot of talking about magnolias recently with clients and coworkers and friends. I'm not entirely sure why as they are spring bloomers and often get forgotten about by this point in the season. But they are spectacular flowering trees so I'm always happy they get the attention. So this got me thinking about some of my favorite types of magnolias this morning and I was compelled to do some digging through my files. Here are a few pretty pics of pretty trees to help you start out your Sunday morning. Speaking of trees, my love and I are talking about a Sunday afternoon social below the lindens at the Beer Garden this afternoon. If interested, give a ring.

Ok, back to the magnolias.... Above and below is Magnolia 'Elizabeth', taken in late April, 2005

Then there is this Magnolia sieboldii from Massachusetts, photographed in early June of 2006. I don't know about you but these blossoms look like something right out of a Dr. Seuss book to me. These flowers were not as big as other magnolias you've seen, but still so striking.

In particular I was talking about Magnolia stellata recently, commonly called a star magnolia. This one is rather young, found at NYBG in mid-April of 2005. The question I was posed with was about how to prune them into more of a tree-form, but personally I like their round to oval habit the way it is.
Certainly not a young tree, this is the largest Magnolia kobus I have ever seen. Talk about a beautiful growth habit and shape. Thanks especially to my expert tree models, Erika, David, and Alicia. Stunning, kids, just stunning!

I can never remember which magnolia this is. It's the one up at Wave Hill on the edge of the opening where the massive copper beech is. I love how those big buds unfurl in spring. Caroline, if you see this perhaps you can shed some light on the situation.

And then, lastly for today, Magnolia x loebneri 'Leonard Messel'. It is a cross between Magnolia kobus and Magnolia stellata originally bred by Max Lobner in Germany just before World War I, hence the common name Loebner magnolia. This chance hybrid, 'Leonard Messel', was the work of Colonel Messel himself at his gardens in Sussex, England. Without a doubt this is a major fave within the magnolia genus. The petals are long and delicate like the star magnolia but the tree can get to be a beautiful, full 30' at maturity with a habit more like the Kobus magnolia. Supposedly they are easy to propagate from soft wood cuttings, according to Dirr, but I have yet to try myself. This one was photographed on April, 14, 2005.