With over eighty species native to North America and Asia, there are magnolias for every taste and garden regardless of yard size. Native, tolerant of coastal conditions, and deer proof, what’s not to love?
Magnolias: does anything evoke the south so exquisitely? If you’ve ever considered planting a magnolia but didn’t for fear of constantly falling leaves from a giant, evergreen tree, it’s time to reconsider.
You can still have the gorgeous, fragrant blooms on a much smaller magnolia that won’t shed year-round. Additionally, choices include evergreen or deciduous white, pink, red, or purple flowers and varieties not normally eaten by deer. Their seeds and foliage are favorites of migrating birds.
All magnolias appreciate acidic, well-drained soil and should be sited where they can grow uncrowded in a bed without grass or plantings underneath. Digging around their roots can severely damage them. They need protection from wind, require little pruning, and rarely have serious pest or disease problems, thriving in full sun to partial shade and hardy to zones 7-10.
With over eighty species native to North America and Asia, there are magnolias for every taste and garden regardless of yard size. Native, tolerant of coastal conditions, and deer proof, what’s not to love? A few to consider:
- Southern Magnolia, Magnolia grandiflora, is a majestic, evergreen that climbs up to eighty feet, can cover forty feet in width, and grows an amazing one to two feet per year. It’s best reserved for very large properties, lengthy driveways, or woods’ edge. Good substitutes are:
Magnolia g. ‘Brackens Brown Beauty,’ thirty to fifty feet tall, hardy to zone 5B
Magnolia g. ‘Little Gem,’ twenty-five feet tall
Magnolia g. ‘Alta,’ ten to twenty feet tall
Magnolia g. ‘Teddy Bear,’ fifteen to twenty feet tall
- Star magnolia, Magnolia stellata, is deciduous with bright white, star-like blossoms in early spring and grows to fifteen feet.
- Saucer magnolia, Magnolia x soulangeana, is deciduous with pink blossoms and grows to twenty-five feet.
- Sweet bay magnolia, Magnolia virginiana, is deciduous or evergreen depending on the zone. It is a native tree growing to fifty feet, with smaller, white, fragrant flowers, and thrives in wet soil.
For more information, go to magnoliasociety.org.
Garden Spot by Katherine M. Brooks, VSLD, Virginia Certified Landscape Designer, is a regular column in The Local Scoop. Do you have a question about gardening in the Northern Neck or Middle Peninsula? Ask Kathy! Call her at 804-387-7402. Visit katherinebrookslandscapes.com for more information about Kathy and sustainable landscape design.
This article appeared in the Fall 2015 issue of The Local Scoop Magazine, pg. 37.