This season at 3am Growers
“Not Steel Magnolias!”
Nope, this is not a movie but a real life drama about a business in the business of selling trees. And beautiful trees they are!
Magnolias -- Preferred by Young Tree Climbers Throughout the South
Growing up in south Alabama we (siblings, cousins, and friends – boys and girls) all were tree climbers and one of our favorite trees to climb was a beautiful, old, gnarled, majestic, and well carved upon magnolia.
Only the smaller of our group could attempt to get to the very tippy top. The older and heavier of us would break the smaller, high altitude limbs and risk a bumpy ride to terra firma. We all however would pull out our trusty Barlow pocket knives and etch our initials in the trunk somewhere up high.
That was 50+ years ago and that tree still inhabits its piece of ground though many of its caretakers have long passed away.
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Magnolia liliiflora 'Jane'
A hybrid magnolia developed at the U.S. National Arboretum in the mid-fifties. It is a hardy shrub or small tree with reddish purple flowers outside and white inside opening late in spring. Flowers are tulip-shaped with a light fragrance. Leaves are dark green and somewhat leathery. They grow 10'-15' high, best in full morning sun and partially shaded afternoons and prefer rich, moist, and well-drained soils.
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Magnolia x soulangiana 'Alexandrina'
Deciduous large shrub or small tree valued for its early spring large tulip-shaped blooms which are purplish-pink with white interior. It is medium fast-growing and has good pollution tolerance. They grow best in moist, deep, acid soil, and full sun. They grow to 20' to 30' with a 25' spread.
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Magnolia virginiana
The Sweet Bay Magnolia has dark green leaves with undersides that have a silver frosted appearance. The creamy white flowers are 2"-3" and have a light lemon scent. They appear in late spring and early summer. Bright red seeded fruit ripens in late summer attracting many birds. They prefer moist, acid soil with sun to partial shade and grow 10'-20' high with equal spread.
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Magnolia grandiflora ‘Alta’(tm)
Alta magnolia has glossy, dark green, leathery, glossy, broadly ovate leaves to 8 inches long with rusty, hairy undersides and an upright form. Alta will reach 20’ at maturity. It is an evergreen tree with a broadly conical growth habit. It has large fragrant flowers that are cup-shaped and creamy white with 9 to 10 petals up to 10 inches across.
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Magnolia grandiflora ‘Little Gem’
Little gem has a compact, upright growth habit more typical of a multi-stemmed shrub than a single-trunked tree. It is a slow grower to a height of 30 to 35 feet with an 8 to 12-foot spread and flowers at two or three years old, surprising when it is only three or four feet tall. They form a dense, dark green oval or pyramidal shape, making it suited for screen or hedge planting.
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Magnolia grandiflora ‘Bracken’s Brown Beauty’
Bracken’s Brown Beauty has large, saucer-shaped, fragrant flowers and was selected for its dense, uniform growth habit and brown-backed leaves. Usually the trunk grows straight up through the center of the tree creating an erect, narrow oval crown. Branches are shorter compared to others of the species and are typically numerous and small in diameter.
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Magnolia grandiflora ‘Claudia Wannamaker’
Claudia Wannamaker produces a long season of flowers early in growth and attains a pyramidal shape at maturity. At maturity it can reach a height of fifty feet or more with good density and form with a broad growth habit. Leaves are broadly ovate, to 8 in. long, dark green, leathery, glossy with rust colored, hairy undersides. Large fragrant flowers are creamy white, and cup-shaped with 9-10 petals up to 10 in. across
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Magnolia grandiflora ‘D. D. Blanchard’tm
The DD Blanchard Magnolia usually maintains a straight central trunk, allowing them to be grown full to the ground or to be pruned into tree form with a visible trunk. They exhibit an upright pyramidal-oval form with well spaced major branches yielding an open canopy. Leaves have a leathery texture, are oblong (5” to 8”) that are glossy and dark green on top with a fuzzy orange-bronze underside. In the spring and sporadically throughout the summer they produce large, fragrant, creamy white, saucer shaped flowers that are 8 inches wide.
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Click here to view more flowering trees and shrubs in our seasonal inventory.
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