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| Magnolia x soulangiana
Saucer magnoliaMostly pinkish purple on the outside and cup-shaped, the flowers vary from white to purple on the outside and are white on the inside. Most commonly the color is most intense at the base of the tepals, fading to pink or nearly white at the apex. They are 5 to 10" in diameter and usually have 9 tepals appearing before the leaves in early to mid-April in central Illinois. With exceptionally warm weather, flowers have opened as early as March 9 in Urbana, Illinois. In these early flowering years, the flowers are highly likely to be ruined by spring frosts that are common at that time of year. Damaged flower tepals quickly turn brown. For that reason, you are likely only to get a full-length flower display of several weeks once every 3 or 4 years. The spring of 1999 in Illinois allowed this species to produce a spectacular flower display for nearly a month! This species will flower at a young age, making it a big seller in garden centers in the early spring. |
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