Magnolia

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Tree ID: 
172
Family: 
Magnoliales
Genus and species: 
Magnolia soulangeana
Variety: 
Saucer Magnolia
Description: 
The ancient warrior of myth and more popularly known Disney princess Mulan (木兰) got her name from the magnolia blossom, a flower that represents beauty, nobility, and strength in Chinese culture. And so represents the magnolia family of flowering plants, which has survived events such as ice ages, continental drifts, and large-scale mountain formations -- they are so ancient that they were pollinated by beetle because bees hadn't evolved yet! In the winters, these trees may be barren, but in spring, they show their full beauty in explosions of large bowl-shaped or star-shaped blooms of whites and pinks. Besides its beauty, magnolia has also long been used for other functions like in traditional Chinese medicine (with its bark used to treat anxiety, bloating, and inflammation), cooking (leaves are broiled and eaten as vegetables in Japan), and fragrances (stop and smell for a sweet, rose-like aroma!)
Surveyors: 
Cindy Mei, Cailin Hoang
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Area: 
Prospect and Sachem
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Date of tree entry: 
02/05/2025
Height: 
0.81 m
Diameter at breast height: 
0.12 m

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Magnolia bark
The bark on our magnolia tree was dark brown and very hard/tough to the touch. Ours was covered in a thin layer of green algae and mosses and had ridges/small holes along the sides leading up to the branches. Magnolia bark has traditionally been used in medicinal contexts in Asia as a calming remedy (e.g., to reduce stress and anxiety).
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Magnolia twigs and branches
There are many outstretching, thin twigs and branches of our magnolia (the most prominent feature of the plant in the winter, as the rest of the plant is barren). Most of the branches we saw were a light gray or brownish color and seemed sturdy and knobby, with a smooth texture to the touch.
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Magnolia foliage
Magnolias are deciduous and lose their leaves in the fall, which typically emerge after flowers have bloomed in the spring (this is a picture of an earlier stage of our magnolia, where the leaves have only started to emerge). The leaves are large and a dark glossy green with a leathery texture on the top side and a fuzzy brown on the underside, measuring up to 3 feet long and 1 foot wide. They are typically pinnate and elliptical, with a layer of waxy coating covering the foliage to make them more resistant to environmental stressors such as air pollution.
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Magnolia flower
As angiosperms, the reproductive structures of magnolias are large, fragrant flowers that bloom in the spring. They are often bowl-shaped or star-shaped and appear in many different colors (e.g., pink, white, purple, green, yellow, etc.). The flowers are composed of 6-9 tepals (because their petals and sepals are fused). As magnolias are more primitive plants, they are actually technically neither monocots nor dicots and possess characteristics of both (e.g., flower structures in multiples of 3 like monocots but also 2 cotyledons like dicots). The magnolia flower is a perfect flower, meaning that it possesses both male and female reproductive structures on the same flower. It is primarily pollinated by beetles, and the magnolia has evolved a hardened carpal to make sure that the mandibles of the beetles don't wreak damage on the plant.
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We did not see any fruit on our magnolia, as magnolia fruit are usually produced in the fall. Magnolias typically have woody, cone-shaped fruit called follicetum that split open and disperse red and orange seeds in the fall.
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  • Winter
  • Spring
  1. 1
  2. 2
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Natural range of distribution: 
Habitat: 
Considered as one of the most flowering trees in the US, Saucer Magnolia trees prefer slightly acidic rich soils with organic matter, though they are also capable of growing in sandy or clay soils as well. Good drainage is important for Magnolias, as they can only tolerate poor drainage for a short period of time. Saucer Magnolias enjoy partial and full sunlight exposure.
Origin, history, and uses: 

Saucer Magnolias were bred for ornamental purposes. The first plant was created by an officer in Napoleon’s army, Chevalier Etienne Soulange-Bodin. He hybridized two Chinese magnolia species (M. denudata and M. liliiflora) to create the Saucer Magnolia in 1826. The Saucer Magnolia has since been bred into multitudes of different varieties. Though originally bred to be an ornamental plant, Saucer Magnolias have been used for medicinal purposes for thousands of years. The bark, root, seed cones, flower buds and leaves have been used as laxatives, pain-reliever for arthritis, and to relieve symptoms of allergy and respiratory infections.

Phenology: 
Magnolias are deciduous trees that lose their leaves in late fall or early winter, after which they remain dormant until the spring. Beginning in early spring, usually late March and April, saucer magnolia flowers—large white and pink saucer shaped blooms— will begin to bloom. These flowers last for a few weeks before losing their petals. As the petals fall, saucer magnolia trees will begin to produce new leaves, which grow until the next autumn
References: 

https://www.lakeforest.edu/academics/majors-and-minors/environmental-studies/magnolia-x-soulangeana-(saucer-magnolia)-magnoliaceae#:~:text=It%20is%20considered%20to%20be,well%20drained%2C%20or%20clay%20soils.

https://hort.ifas.ufl.edu/database/documents/pdf/tree_fact_sheets/magsoua.pdf

https://treenewal.com/do-saucer-magnolias-lose-their-leaves/#:~:text=After%20the%20flowers%20have%20fallen,typically%20around%2020%2D30%20years.

https://capitol.wa.gov/discover/trees/saucer-magnolia#:~:text=This%20magnolia%20species%20is%20bred,which%20first%20flowered%20in%201826.

 
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Painting of our magnolia!