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Lily Magnolia Wikimedia Commons
Magnoliaceae

Lily Magnolia

Magnolia liliiflora

Feminine beauty, nobility, and a love of nature.

Family
Magnoliaceae
Genus
Magnolia
Native to
China
Bloom season
Spring
Type
deciduous shrub or small tree
Height
250–400 cm
Sunlight
full sun to part shade
Soil
moist, well-drained, slightly acidic
Water
medium
Hardiness
5–9
Lifespan
perennial; 50–100 years

Did you know

  • It has been cultivated in Chinese gardens for over 1,400 years and is a symbol of the feminine principle (yin).
  • The dried flower buds, called 'xin yi', are used in traditional Chinese medicine for sinus congestion.
  • It is one parent of the hugely popular 'Little Girl' hybrid magnolias bred by the US National Arboretum.
  • The flowers open before the leaves emerge, creating a striking display of purple goblets on bare branches.
  • In Chinese art, it is one of the 'jade orchid' flowers, symbolic of purity and perseverance.

Color meanings

Purple

nobility and dignity

Pink

feminine grace

White

purity and perfection

Uses

  • specimen tree
  • foundation planting
  • Chinese gardens
  • traditional medicine
  • hybridization