The Magnolia genus It is made up of trees and shrubs with spectacular flowers: large, softly colored but very pretty, and with an intoxicating aroma. In addition to that, they are primitive plants, since they appeared around 100 million years ago.
This is an interesting fact, since it is known that flowers and pollinating animals had a parallel evolution; not in vain, both depend on the other: the former to produce seeds, and the latter to feed. Then, what is the most common color of magnolia?
flower color history
Although it might be expected that the first color that appeared on Earth was white, since without it there could be no other colors, a scientific study revealed that it was actually bright pink. This is the one they had cyanobacteria, the first organisms capable of photosynthesis that lived in the oceans more than 3.500 billion years ago.
About 485 million years ago, plants began to "come out" of the sea and conquer the Earth. At first it was algae, then mosses, ferns, trees like the Ginkgo biloba, and later on, About 150 million years ago, the first flowering plants appeared, including the Magnolia.
Our protagonists began their evolution in a world in which bees had not yet appeared, but beetles had. These are insects with remarkable strength, so the magnolia flowers developed carpels that are robust and attractive enough for these insects.
Bees, insects that see the world in ultraviolet colors, would not appear until much later: about 30 million years ago. Therefore, until then the flowers of the magnolias would be white.
What is the most common color of magnolias?
The earliest magnolia fossils found date back to about 100 million years ago or so. It is not clear what color their flowers were at that time, but I would almost dare to say that they were white or white-pinkWell, these are the colors they have today.
The most common of all is undoubtedly white. Of the 120 species that have been described to date, the vast majority have white flowers, or with some white-pink petals, such as the following:
denuded magnolia
Image - Wikimedia / A. Bar
La denuded magnolia, also called Yulan or Yulan magnolia, is a deciduous tree native to China. It reaches 15 meters in height, and branches a lot, even from the base. It has oval, bright green leaves and magnificent white flowers. These they sprout at the end of winter, before the leaves do, and they are also large, reaching up to 16 centimeters in diameter.
magnolia fraseri
Image – Wikimedia/Richtid
La magnolia fraseri it is also deciduous. It is native to the Appalachians, in North America, and reaches a height of approximately 10 meters. It has dark green leaves, with a wavy shape, and they fall in winter. Its flowers are white, up to 30 centimeters in diameter, and appear in spring. We could almost say that it is easy to drive it with M. grandiflora, only that it is evergreen.
magnolia grandiflora
Image - Wikimedia / SABENCIA Guillermo César Ruiz
La magnolia grandiflora, simply called magnolia or magnolia, is an evergreen tree native to North America, specifically the southeastern United States. Since the temperatures are milder there, it has no need to drop all its leaves. Of course, we are talking about a very large plant, which can reach 30 meters in height.
It has dark green leaves on the upper side and pubescent on the underside. In spring it produces white flowers, up to 20 centimeters in diameter, and very aromatic.
magnolia hodgsonii
Image – stories.rbge.org.uk
La magnolia hodgenii It is an evergreen tree native to Southeast Asia, where in China it is called Gai lie mu. It reaches 15 meters in height, and produces ovate or oblong leaves up to 40 centimeters long. The flowers are not as large as those of other magnolias, but still have a good size since they measure about 15-20 centimeters in diameter..
magnolia kobus
Image - Wikimedia / Bruce Marlin
La magnolia kobus It is a deciduous tree native to Japan that reaches 20 meters in height. It is a plant of great beauty, which branches off a short distance from the ground, forming a wide, rounded and very elegant crown. Its flowers are white, up to 12 centimeters wide, and they are also fragrant. The only drawback is that its growth is very slow.
magnolia pallescens
Image - Flickr / Karen
La magnolia pallescens, or green ebony, is an evergreen tree endemic to the Dominican Republic. It reaches 19 meters in height, and has obovate or circular dark green leaves. The flowers are white, up to 15 centimeters wide..
It is a species that is in danger, since its wood is very resistant, which is why it is widely used in cabinetmaking. To prevent its disappearance, in 1989 the Ebano Verde Scientific Reserve of the Dominican Republic was created, which has an area of 23 square kilometers.
Magnolia sieboldii
Image - Wikimedia / Wendy Cutler
La Magnolia sieboldii, or Oyama magnolia, is a tree native to East Asia. It grows between 5 and 10 meters high, and has elliptical or oblong leaves of a dark green color, and with a length of up to 25 centimeters. The flowers are white, up to 10 centimeters wide, and hanging. These sprout in spring-summer. As a curious fact, add that it is the national flower of North Korea.
Starry magnolia
Image - Wikimedia / A. Bar
La Starry magnolia, called star magnolia, is a small tree-shaped deciduous shrub native to Japan that reaches 3 meters in height. The leaves are dark green above and slightly paler below, and are about 13 centimeters long. Like other species, it blooms in late winter. Its flowers measure about 10 centimeters in diameter, and are white, although they can sometimes be light pink.
virginian magnolia
Image – Wikimedia/JE Theriot
La virginian magnolia It is an evergreen or deciduous tree depending on the climate native to North America that reaches 30 meters in height. The leaves are elliptical, green in color, and about 13 centimeters long. Its flowers are white, 14 centimeters wide, and it is said that they smell like vanilla.
These are very beautiful trees, which in most cases have white flowers. Since their growth rate is rather slow, it is possible to keep them in a pot for a long season, or even for their entire life if they are pruned regularly.