^ 



Detail of Magnolia stellata, showing that it has twice as 

 many petals as the others 



If so, it must come into competition with 

 M. tripetala of which it probably has the ad- 

 vantage only in fragrance. Its maxi- 

 mum height in the wild is fifty feet. 



Thompson's magnolia is known to nur- 

 serymen as M. glauca, var. major, but it 

 would better be called M. Thompsoniana. 

 This is believed to be better than our sweet 

 bay in some respects. Certainly the flower 

 is twice as large (5-6 inches). It is of garden 

 origin and supposed to be a hybrid between 

 M. glauca and M. tripetala. It resembles the 

 former in being a shrub or small tree which 

 is evergreen in the South and deciduous 

 North, and it has a little of the peculiar 

 whiteness on the under side of the leaves. 

 The main evidence of tripetala blood, I 



Magnolia Soulangeana. prototype of the hybrids which 

 have all the virtues of cM, Yulan, plus color 



Magnolia Kobus. perhaps the hardiest magnolia that blooms 

 before the leaves, but less showy than others 



suppose, resides in the sepals which are 

 shorter than the petals and yellowish. For- 

 tunately, it does not resemble tripetala in the 

 odor of its flowers. It probably blooms 

 later than its parents (June- July). 



FOUR FLOWERS WITH A TOUCH OF RED 



The only distinctive merit of M. parviflora 

 that I can discern is its pink sepals which 

 are rather large. The flowers are not so 

 very small (3-4 inches). Its rival is Watson's 

 magnolia (M. Watsoni). The beauty of 

 both is much enchanced by the brilliant 

 red filaments. 



Watson's magnolia has the advantage of 

 a larger flower (5-6 inches) but although it 

 has been much praised it is not geneially 



available to the public. It has failed in 

 England and I do not know of any American 

 nurseryman who has it. It is to be hoped 

 that one of these species will prove hardy, 

 for we have no hardy representative of the 

 magnolias with the brilliant red centres. 



Perhaps Magnolia hypoleuca will beat the 

 two preceding species, for it is said to be al- 

 most as hardy as M. macro phylla, which 

 thrives in sheltered positions near New York. 

 Let us hope so, for it has the largest flowers 

 (6-7 inches) and the noble pyramidal habit 

 of the tulip tree. It attains 100 feet in Japan 

 (whence all these three species come) and is 

 the species from which Japanese sword 

 sheaths are made. Also its charcoal is used 

 in making lacquer work. The name hypo- 



M. Lennei, one of the darkest colored flowers among 

 the hybrids that bloom before the leaves 



The grandest broad-leaved evergreen tree of temper- 

 ate regions, the bull bay (Magnolia grandiflora) 

 268 



Magnolia fruits, showing how the berries slip.out and 

 hang by threads. M, Kobus 



