Common Name: large-flowered magnolia
Type: Broadleaf evergreen
Family: Magnoliaceae
Zone: 6 to 9
Height: 40.00 to 60.00 feet
Spread: 20.00 to 30.00 feet
Bloom Time: May to June
Bloom Description: White
Sun: Full sun to part shade
Water: Medium
Maintenance: Low
Suggested Use: Flowering Tree
Flower: Showy, Fragrant
Leaf: Evergreen
Fruit: Showy
Other: Winter Interest
Tolerate: Air Pollution
Culture
Best grown in moist, organically rich, well-drained loams in full sun to part shade. Part shade may be best. It is generally intolerant of soil extremes (dry or wet). It is also intolerant of many urban pollutants. Trees will become quite large over time and should be planted in areas where they can expand. Reliably hardy in Zones 7-9. Can be grown in Zone 6 if sited in a protected location. Plants may become somewhat deciduous in hard winters.
Unlike some M. grandiflora cultivars, 'Edith Bogue' is considered to be winter hardy to the St. Louis area. It may become somewhat deciduous in hard winters and should be sited in sheltered locations to provide additional winter protection.
Noteworthy Characteristics
Magnolia grandiflora is a broadleaf evergreen tree that is noted for its attractive dark green leaves and its large, extremely fragrant flowers. It typically grows to 60-80’ tall with a pyramidal to rounded crown. This is a magnificent tree of the South. It is native to moist wooded areas in the southeastern United States from North Carolina to Florida and Texas. Leathery evergreen ovate to elliptic leaves (to 10” long) are glossy dark green above and variable pale green to gray-brown beneath. Fragrant white flowers (to 8-12” diameter) usually have six petals. Flowers bloom in late spring, with sparse continued flowering throughout the summer. Flowers give way to spherical cone-like fruiting clusters (to 3-5” long) that mature in late summer to early fall, releasing individual rose-red coated seeds suspended on slender threads at maturity.
Genus name honors Pierre Magnol, French botanist (1638-1715).
Specific epithet is from Latin meaning large flowers.
'Edith Bogue' is a cultivar that is noted for its excellent winter hardiness. Over time, this cultivar will grow to 60’ by 30’ wide. Lemon-scented, white flowers (to 12” diameter) bloom in early summer. The original seedling of this tree was purchased in 1917 from a nursery in Florida by Edith Bogue of Montclair, New Jersey.
Problems
No serious insect or disease problems.
Uses
Specimen or accent for lawns or other open areas where its ultimate size can be accommodated. Can be grouped to form an evergreen screen.