*Saucer magnolia

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Saucer magnolia in bloom in Spring, with historic Loockerman Hall (late 1700's).

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Flowers on another saucer magnolia on campus.

*Magnolia ×soulangeana
SAUCER MAGNOLIA
Magnoliaceae

Location: map coordinates T-16 (east side of Loockerman Hall), N 39°11'6'' W 75°32'41''

Planting history: presently unknown.

Description:
  • relatively small deciduous tree
  • etymology: Magnolia after Pierre Magnol (1638-1715), French botanist; soulangeana = after Etienne Soulange-Bodin, French, retired cavalry officer under Napoleon, and Director of the Royal Institute of Horticulture, who produced this hybrid
  • hybrid of Magnolia denudata and M. liliiflora (China)
  • leaves large, simple, dark green, shiny
  • flowers large, bowl-shaped, white/pinkish; cover tree in early spring, before the leaves. Petals relatively wide
  • fruit cone-shaped; aggregate (of follicles)
  • seeds bright red, hang on silky threads from the fruit, rich in lipids
  • hardy in Delaware, but less so in exposed sites

*Non-native (not native to Delaware)
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