Evaluations of Magnolia Grandflora Selections in South-Central Alabama, U.S.

Abstract

In December 1983, 12 southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora L.) selections were added to a comprehensive tree evaluation project at the Piedmont Substation in Camp Hill, Alabama, U.S., in USDA Plant Hardiness Zone 7b. Growth rates were determined annually. Cultivars 'Margaret Davis' and 'Smith Fogle' along with seedling selections from a native population near Mobile, Alabama, demonstrated the greatest overall annual growth after the first 18 years of the study. Foliar characteristics were evaluated in September 2000. The seedling selections and 'Majestic Beauty' had the greatest mean leaf area, with 'Little Gem' the smallest. Cultivars 'Bracken's Brown Beauty', 'Hasse', and 'Little Gem' had the most tomentose (considered "brown" in industry) abaxial leaf surface, which is considered a highly desirable trait. In 'Majestic Beauty', seedlings, Aldridge, and 'Smith Fogle', the abaxial leaf surfaces were the most glabrous (considered "green"), generally regarded as a less desirable trait.