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Magnolia virginiana
Also called Swamp Bay, Swamp Laurel, Sweet Bay, Sweet Magnolia, White Bay, Laurel Magnolia, Laurier Doux
Sweetbay magnolia is a small to medium tree from wet lowlands of the eastern U.S., prized for its fragrant creamy white flowers and clean foliage. It grows best in moist, acidic soil and tolerates wet ground well.
Magnolia virginiana, most commonly known as sweetbay magnolia, or merely sweetbay (also laurel magnolia, swampbay, swamp magnolia, white bay, or beaver tree), is a member of the magnolia family, Magnoliaceae. It was the first magnolia to be scientifically described under modern rules of botanical nomenclature, and is the type species of the genus Magnolia; as Magnolia is also the type genus of all flowering plants (magnoliophytes), this species in a sense typifies all flowering plants. Magnolia virginiana is very flood tolerant, it is also drought tolerant. The species is found in wetlands.
Magnolia virginiana is often grown as an ornamental tree in gardens, and used in horticultural applications to give an architectural feel to landscape designs. It is an attractive tree for parks and large gardens, grown for its large, conspicuous, scented flowers, for its clean, attractive foliage, and for its fast growth. In warmer areas Magnolia virginiana is valued for its evergreen foliage.
The English botanist and missionary John Banister collected Magnolia virginiana in the southeastern United States in 1678 and sent it to England, where it flowered for Bishop Henry Compton. This species was the first magnolia to be cultivated in England, although it was soon overshadowed by the evergreen, larger-flowered southern magnolia (M. grandiflora).
Flowers contain the neolignans 3,5′-diallyl-2′,4-dihydroxybiphenyl, 4,4′-diallyl-2,3′-dihydroxybiphenyl ether, 5,5′-diallyl-2,2′-dihydroxybiphenyl and 3,5′-diallyl-2′-hydroxy-4-methoxybiphenyl.
Ashe's Magnolia · Magnolia boliviana · Campbell's Magnolia · Magnolia cararensis · Champak · Prosperous Music Smiling Tree · Magnolia coco · Compressed Michelia · Dawson's magnolia · Cloudforest magnolia · Chinese Evergreen Magnolia · Lilytree
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Magnolia virginiana by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
