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Magnolia grandiflora

Common name:		Family:	Magnoliaceae
Author:	L.	Botanical references:	11, 72, 200
Synonyms:	Magnolia virginiana foetida (L.), Magnolia foetida (Sarg.)
Known Hazards:	None known
Range:	South-eastern N. America - North Carolina to Florida and Texas.
Habitat:	Hammocks, sand dunes, buffs and sandy bottoms[72]. Rich moist soils[227]. Always found in lowland areas, never above 105 metres altitude[229]
Edibility Rating (1-5):	2	Medicinal Rating (1-5):	2

Other Possible Synonyms:	From various places across the web, may not be correct. See below.
	M. grandiflora f. lanceolata[G] M. grandiflora var. exoniensis[G]
Other Common Names:	From various places around the Web, may not be correct. See below.
	Magnolia [E], Magnolia, Southern [S], Southern Magnolia [FEIS,H,DEN1,B,P], Taisan-Boku [E],
Epithets:	From a Dictionary of Botanical Epithets
	flora = flowered; grandiflora = large flowered;
Systematics:	From a USDA Plants Database
	Order: Magnoliales. Magnolia family
Other Range Info:	From the Ethnobotany Database
	Us

Physical Characteristics

An evergreen tree growing to 10m by 10m at a medium rate. It is hardy to zone 6. It is in leaf all year, in flower from June to September, and the seeds ripen from September to November. The scented flowers are hermaphrodite (have both male and female organs) and are pollinated by Beetles. The plant not is self-fertile. We rate it 2/5 for edibility and 2/5 for medicinal use.

The plant prefers light (sandy), medium (loamy) and heavy (clay) soils and requires well-drained soil. The plant prefers acid, neutral and basic (alkaline) soils. It can grow in semi-shade (light woodland) or no shade. It requires moist soil. The plant can tolerates strong winds but not maritime exposure.

Habitats and Possible Locations

Woodland, Canopy, Secondary.

Edible Uses

Condiment; Flowers.

The flowers are pickled in some parts of England and are considered to have an exquisite flavour[2, 183]. They are also said to be used as a spice and a condiment[183].

Medicinal Uses

Disclaimer

Diaphoretic; Hypotensive; Salve; Stimulant; Tonic.

The bark is diaphoretic, stimulant, tonic[46, 61, 240]. It is used in the treatment of malaria and rheumatism[240]. A decoction has been used as a wash and a bath for prickly heat itching[257]. The decoction has also been used as a wash for sores and as a steam bath for treating dropsy[257].
An alcoholic extract of the plant reduces the blood pressure, produces a slight acceleration in respiration but has no action on the heart[240].

Other Uses

Essential; Shelterbelt; Wood.

A fairly wind-tolerant tree, it can be used in shelterbelt plantings[200].
An essential oil is obtained from the flowers[240].
Wood - hard and fairly heavy, but weak and not durable[227]. White when first cut, it turns brown on exposure to air[229]. It is used in limited amounts for fuel, baskets, crates, woodenware and furniture[82, 227].

Cultivation details

Best grown in a warm position in a moderately rich free soil of an open texture[1]. Tolerates moderately limey soils[200, 202] so long as they are deep and rich in humus[188]. The branches are brittle so a sheltered position is required[200]. Another part of the same book says that this species is fairly wind-resistant[200]. Succeeds in full sun or semi-shade[219].
Plants are hardy to about -10°c[200].
The fleshy roots are easily damaged and any transplanting is best done during a spell of mild moist weather in late spring[182].
A very ornamental plant[1], a number of named forms have been developed[200].
The flowers are very large (up to 25cm across) and have a delicious and very powerful scent[202, 245]. This is perhaps the most strongly scented flower in the world[245]. They can be produced in trees as young as 10 years old[229]. The form 'Exmouth Variety' (also known as elliptica) produces its flowers when younger than the species, these flowers have a refreshing lemon scent[245]. There is no main flush of flowering, instead the flowers open intermittently throughout the summer[K].
Plants do not normally need pruning, any cutting out of dead wood etc is best carried out in July[219].

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame. Stored seed must be kept cold over the winter and should be sown in late winter in a cold frame[200]. The seed usually germinates in the spring but it can take 18 months. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse for at least their first winter. They can be planted out into their permanent positions when they are more than 15cm tall, though should be well mulched and given some protection from winter cold for their first winter or two outdoors.
Layering in early spring[200].

Scent

Flowers: Fresh: The flowers have a delicious and very powerful scent, possibly more powerful than any other flower[245].

Cultivars

'': There are some named forms for this species, but these have been developed for their ornamental value and not for their other uses. Unless you particularly require the special characteristics of any of these cultivars, we would generally recommend that you grow the natural species for its useful properties. We have, therefore, not listed the cultivars in this database[K].

Suppliers

For more details of plant suppliers please see our Suppliers Page which lists many more places to look.

Web References

[H] Details of Scandanavian and European Common names in Henriette's names database
[E] Ethnobotany Data (common names, uses, countries) from the Ethnobotany Database.
[V] Images from the Vascular Plant Image Gallery of the Texas A&M Bioinformatics Working Group.
[B] Data (Latin & Common names, other references) from the BONAP's Synonymized Checklist of the Vascular Flora of the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands.
[S] Illustration from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
[S] Illustration from the Southwest School of Botanical Medicine
[G] Data (Common Names, Uses, Distribution) from the USDA/ARS NPGS's GRIN taxonomic database.
[P] Data. (uses, distribution, wetland) from the USDA'a Plants database.
[HP] Links, Photos, Suppliers from Hortiplex Plant Database
[DEN] Data _ Photos (Good Identification info) from the Virginia Tech's Dendrology Deptarments' Tree Fact Sheets.
[FEIS] Data (Uses, Ecology, Fire Effects) from the USDA Forestry Service Fire Effects Information System.

References for magnolia grandiflora (a possible synonym).

[HP] PhotoFrom Henriette's plant pictures
[HP] PhotoFrom Henriette's plant pictures

References for the family Magnoliaceae.

To be included in the Flora of China.

See the PFAF Links Pages for other sources.

Also try Photos and info from the The Plants Database which has 14,000 images.

References

[K] Ken Fern
Notes from observations, tasting etc at Plants For A Future and on field trips.

[1] F. Chittendon. RHS Dictionary of Plants plus Supplement. 1956 Oxford University Press 1951
Comprehensive listing of species and how to grow them. Somewhat outdated, it has been replaces in 1992 by a new dictionary (see [200]).

[2] Hedrick. U. P. Sturtevant's Edible Plants of the World. Dover Publications 1972 ISBN 0-486-20459-6
Lots of entries, quite a lot of information in most entries and references.

[11] Bean. W. Trees and Shrubs Hardy in Great Britain. Vol 1 - 4 and Supplement. Murray 1981
A classic with a wealth of information on the plants, but poor on pictures.

[46] Uphof. J. C. Th. Dictionary of Economic Plants. Weinheim 1959
An excellent and very comprehensive guide but it only gives very short descriptions of the uses without any details of how to utilize the plants. Not for the casual reader.

[61] Usher. G. A Dictionary of Plants Used by Man. Constable 1974 ISBN 0094579202
Forget the sexist title, this is one of the best books on the subject. Lists a very extensive range of useful plants from around the world with very brief details of the uses. Not for the casual reader.

[72] Small. Manual of the Southeastern Flora.
Getting rather dated now, it covers Southeastern N. America. No pictures, it is not for the casual reader.

[82] Sargent. C. S. Manual of the Trees of N. America. Dover Publications Inc. New York. 1965 ISBN 0-486-20278-X
Two volumes, a comprehensive listing of N. American trees though a bit out of date now. Good details on habitats, some details on plant uses. Not really for the casual reader.

[182] Thomas. G. S. Ornamental Shrubs, Climbers and Bamboos. Murray 1992 ISBN 0-7195-5043-2
Contains a wide range of plants with a brief description, mainly of their ornamental value but also usually of cultivation details and varieties.

[183] Facciola. S. Cornucopia - A Source Book of Edible Plants. Kampong Publications 1990 ISBN 0-9628087-0-9
Excellent. Contains a very wide range of conventional and unconventional food plants (including tropical) and where they can be obtained (mainly N. American nurseries but also research institutes and a lot of other nurseries from around the world.

[188] Brickell. C. The RHS Gardener's Encyclopedia of Plants and Flowers Dorling Kindersley Publishers Ltd. 1990 ISBN 0-86318-386-7
Excellent range of photographs, some cultivation details but very little information on plant uses.

[200] Huxley. A. The New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. 1992. MacMillan Press 1992 ISBN 0-333-47494-5
Excellent and very comprehensive, though it contains a number of silly mistakes. Readable yet also very detailed.

[202] Davis. B. Climbers and Wall Shrubs. Viking. 1990 ISBN 0-670-82929-3
Contains information on 2,000 species and cultivars, giving details of cultivation requirements. The text is terse but informative.

[219] Grey-Wilson. C. & Matthews. V. Gardening on Walls Collins 1983 ISBN 0-00-219220-0
A nice little book about plants for growing against walls and a small section on plants that can grow in walls.

[227] Vines. R.A. Trees of North Texas University of Texas Press. 1982 ISBN 0292780206
A readable guide to the area, it contains descriptions of the plants and their habitats with quite a bit of information on plant uses.

[229] Elias. T. The Complete Trees of N. America. Field Guide and Natural History. Van Nostrand Reinhold Co. 1980 ISBN 0442238622
A very good concise guide. Gives habitats, good descriptions, maps showing distribution and a few of the uses. It also includes the many shrubs that occasionally reach tree proportions.

[240] Chopra. R. N., Nayar. S. L. and Chopra. I. C. Glossary of Indian Medicinal Plants (Including the Supplement). Council of Scientific and Industrial Research, New Delhi. 1986
Very terse details of medicinal uses of plants with a wide range of references and details of research into the plants chemistry. Not for the casual reader.

[245] Genders. R. Scented Flora of the World. Robert Hale. London. 1994 ISBN 0-7090-5440-8
An excellent, comprehensive book on scented plants giving a few other plant uses and brief cultivation details. There are no illustrations.

[257] Moerman. D. Native American Ethnobotany Timber Press. Oregon. 1998 ISBN 0-88192-453-9
Very comprehensive but terse guide to the native uses of plants. Excellent bibliography, fully referenced to each plant, giving a pathway to further information. Not for the casual reader.

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Bibliography

Plant information taken from the Plants For A Future - Species Database. Copyright (c) 1997-2003.
WEB search engine by Rich Morris - Home Page- Contact Info
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