The Magnolias and the Tulip Tree 



Campbell's magnolia {M. Camphelli) is at once the most 

 beautiful and the most difficult of cultivation of all our tender 

 exotic species. It is the glory of the high mountain valleys of 

 the Himalayas, where at very high altitudes it is a great tree. 

 But in this country it cannot endure cold winters, and even in the 

 extreme South it does not grow as it does at home. However, 

 it is a splendid magnolia, and some day we hope to see 

 it — a tree 80 to 100 feet high — covered, before the leaves 

 appear, with its rosy bells. It is, or should be, to the 

 Southern States what the Soulangeana group is to the North, 

 for its petals are coloured pink or crimson, shading from 

 the pale interior to the deeper colouring on the outside. 

 The flower cups are from 6 to 10 inches in diameter and 

 sweet scented. 



The rest of the tender exotic species bloom after the leaves 

 appear. Of these, the best, by all odds, is Magnolia hypoleuca, 

 a tall tree which is notable because it is used so extensively in the 

 manufacture of the lacquered wares for which the Japanese are 

 famous. It is readily distinguished from all the species so far 

 described by the dash of scarlet in the centre of its white blossoms. 

 This colour is on the filaments of the stamens, and not on .the 

 petals. Another strikingly beautiful feature of this tree is 

 the silvery linings of the leaves, which are much larger 

 than those of the swamp bay. The latter species shows 

 far less brilliant contrast in its foliage mass than does this 

 exotic. 



Another species with crimson-centred flowers is Watson's 

 magnolia {M. iVatsoni), a small tree, with blossoms 5 or 6 inches 

 across. These have a decided odour of allspice. 



The dwarf magnolia {M. pumila), a native of China, grows 

 only 4 or 5 feet high, as a rule, and has white flowers which exhale 

 a perfume like that of a ripe pineapple. This is especially strong 

 at night. The flowers are small — only an inch or two in diameter 

 — but the shrub is widely found in Southern gardens, probably 

 because of its fragrance and the foliage, which is evergreen. Its 

 period of bloom is long, and under glass it becomes everblooming. 

 The purple magnolia (M. ohovata) is also grown in the South, but 

 I see no reason why it should be. Surely it is inferior to its 

 noted offspring, which embody all its good traits and are, besides, 

 far easier to grow. 



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