Magnolia 'Butterflies' Bloom Spring

Magnolia 'Butterflies' Bloom SpringThe magnolia 'butterflies' is an amazing specimen tree. It's unusual due to its large yellow tulip shaped blooms that offer the faint scent of lemon. The color reminds me of lemon ice cream and darkens as the blooms mature. In the spring, loads of blooms precede leaves, emerging from large buds with a creamy yellow color that stays strong through the life of the bloom. As the blooms fall from the tree in a shower of pedals, the leaves begin to emerge.

While most wild dogwoods display classic white bracts

over patios

But who's looking at those when you've got four spectacular white bracts stealing the show

accept its quirks

while pollinators mob the spring flowers [7]

lemony fragrance and leaves that flutter in the slightest breeze to flash their silvery undersides

the pollinated flowers develop into clusters of bright red drupes that persist well into winter

Jean's Appalachian Snow produces glossy

The white and green variegation is very distinct and the leaves themselves appear crinkle which gives it a textured look through the entire season

you begin to understand why this cultivar earned its royal moniker

They are relatively small and will top out at 10 to 12 feet tall and 8 to 10 feet wide

who spent 50 years hybridizing and evaluating crabapples