Evergreen Magnolia
EVERGREEN MAGNOLIA
(Magnolia grandiflora)
Shape broadly pyramidal, symmetrical; to 90 ft. tall. Trunk short, thick. Bark brown-gray, finally rough with short thin scales. Buds large, silky. Leaves evergreen, leathery, glittering above, rusty downy beneath. Flowers 6-8 in. across, water-lily-like, fragrant with waxy petals that fall one by one. Range: Low grounds near the coast from se. N. C. to Tex. and up the Mississippi to Ark. Not centr. and s. Fla. This beautiful ornamental tree is cultivated far beyond its range in the wild. The flowers bloom from April to June in the South, in midsummer in the North. SWEET BAY MAGNOLIA (Magnolia virginiana) is a small straggling tree, very similar, but the leaves much smaller and thinner, with dense white down beneath; flowers also smaller. Gulf and S. Atlantic states, n. in swamps near the sea to Magnolia, Mass.
Tulip Tree
TULIP TREE
(Liriodendron tulipifera)
Shape with a small pyramidal head; up to 190 ft. tall. Trunk straight and often massive (to 10 ft. thick) sometimes clean of branches for 100 ft. Bark brownish gray with short, deep vertical furrows and rounded ridges. Branches slender, curved, the lower drooping; twigs erect, shining brown, many bearing the flowers like candelabra. Leaves turning rich gold or russet in autumn. Flowers 3-4 in. across, blooming in May and June. Range: Southern States (exc. Tex., Okla. and s. Fla.) to s. parts of Wis., Mich., Vt. Also n. centr. Mass. and n. shore of L. Erie. By lumbermen called “Yellow Poplar” on account of its restless leaves and yellow wood, this lively tree is probably the most valuable American timber tree (aside from the Conifers) and certainly the tallest in the eastern States. The wood is light, soft, but not readily shrinking or splitting, used for boat building, shingles and boxes.
Great Leaved Magnolia