Early bloomer

Spring can't come too soon for a saucer magnolia. When most flowering trees are still drowsy with dormancy, Magnolia x soulangeana is dressed and ready to go. In the West's mildest climates, the transformation starts in January (later in colder regions), when dozens of tulip-shaped pastel flowers unfurl on gray branches. The effect is breathtaking, like doves preening inside a tracery of delicate limbs.

Because of their moderate scale (they grow to about 25 feet), saucer magnolias are welcome additions to most gardens. (Don't confuse M. x soulangeana with lusty M. grandiflora, the well-known magnolia of Southern-plantation fame, which grows to 80 feet.) Locate your tree in partial to full sun (afternoon shade in hottest climates), in a spot where you can enjoy a view of its graceful form.

COPYRIGHT 2007 Sunset Publishing Corp.
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning