376 DECIDUOUS TREES. 



M. acuminata ; but by grafting on the M. purpurea, it is converted 

 into a low shrub, suitable for growing in pots, and forcing, under 

 glass, into winter bloom. It should have a well-drained, porous, 

 warm soil. Having no leaves of its own during its blooming 

 season, it is the more desirable to place it near evergreens, against 

 whose dark foliage its blossoms will be pleasingly relieved, and 

 whose height and foliage may shield it from winds. 



FIG. 117. 



SOULANGE'S MAGNOLIA, M. Soulangeana, is a magnificent hybrid 

 between the M. conspicua and M. purpurea, and more showy and 

 vigorous than either. Fig. 117 is an imperfect representation 

 of a superb specimen growing in the specimen grounds of the 

 Parsons nursery at Flushing, L. I. ; in appearance a huge 

 spreading shrub of large glossy foliage, but in size a tree, with 

 a trunk fifteen inches in diameter, the head forty feet in breadth, 

 and thirty feet high. It blooms in May. Its immense flowers 

 begin to appear while it is in the nursery rows, and when larger 

 it rivals the horse-chestnut in the splendor of its inflorescence. 

 The two trees being in bloom at the same time, present the widest 

 difference in the character of their flowers. Those of the magnolia 

 are borne singly, are irregularly cup-shaped, from four to six inches 

 in diameter, white, tinged with purple, and somewhat fragrant. 

 The tree has the abundant masses of glossy leaves that distinguish 

 the M. purpurea; but instead of being like that species a low shrub, 



