Students for Stewardship The Cork Board
← Back to the library

Jane Magnolia

Magnolia (mag-NOL-ee-ah)

Family: Magnoliaceae Unknown Understory (15-40 ft)

'Jane' magnolia is a hybrid deciduous shrub or small tree with a compact habit in the magnolia family (Magnoliaceae). It is part of the Little Girl series created at the National Arboretum in the 1950s by Francis DeVos and William Kosar, who selected this cultivar from the progeny of M. liliiflora 'Reflorescens' crossed with M. stellata 'Waterlily'. Plant in moist, rich, well-drained soils in the full sun to partial shade in rich neutral to acidic, well-drained but evenly moist soils. Regular mulching of the root zone will help keep the soil moist. 'Jane' is tolerant of heavy clay soils, air pollution and heat. Prune sparingly, only to remove dead or broken branches, or if needed to maintain shape, do so after flowering. This magnolia has roots that are fleshy and easily damaged, so it is best not to move this plant once it is established. Choose the landscape location wisely. The Little Girl Series flowers from mid-April to early May, which is about two to four weeks later than its parent species and therefore less likely to be damaged by frost. 'Jane' is a particularly cold-hardy form with large fragrant purple-red flowers that resemble tulips with white centers covering bare branches before the leaves emerge. The flowers occasionally rebloom mid-summer. It grows to a height of around 15 feet tall and 12 feet wide. Plant as a specimen in a lawn, grow as an informal privacy hedge, along a foundation, use in the middle to back of a shrub border or at a woodland edge. This compact flowering tree makes a great addition to any courtyard, patio, or small space in the garden. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: Insect problems include scale, thrips, and weevils. Anthracnose, canker, leaf spot and powdery mildew are occasional disease problems. More information on Magnolia .

Source: NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox ↗ NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox, 47 attributes.

How it fits the guild

Guild layer 2 - Understory (15-40 ft) Optimal soil pH Acid (<6.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
See companions & conflicts ↓

Companions & Conflicts

Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.

No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.

Also noted by NC State

Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.

Fills a similar niche Calycanthus floridus Fothergilla 'Mount Airy' Stewartia malacodendron

Full plant profile

Growing Conditions
Plant type
Perennial; Shrub
Life cycle
Woody
USDA zones
4a, 4b, 5a, 5b, 6a, 6b, 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b
Light
Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
Clay; High Organic Matter; Loam (Silt); Sand
Soil pH
Acid (<6.0); Neutral (6.0-8.0)
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist
Available space
6-feet-12 feet; 12-24 feet
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 10 ft. 0 in. - 15 ft. 0 in. | Width: 8 ft. 0 in. - 12 ft. 0 in.
Growth rate
Slow
Maintenance
Medium
Canopy layer
2 - Understory (15-40 ft)
Form & Appearance
Foliage
Deciduous
Leaf color
Brown/Copper; Green
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Alternate
Leaf shape
Ovate
Leaf margin
Entire
Leaf feel
Leathery
Leaf size
> 6 inches long
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
6" long ovate leaves emerge coppery and then durn dark green. Bronze-yellow fall color.
Fall color
Brown/Copper; Gold/Yellow
Flower color
Pink; Purple/Lavender; Red/Burgundy; White
Flower value
Fragrant; Showy
Flower shape
Cup
Flower size
> 6 inches
Flower detail
8" wide cup-shaped red-purple with white centers, showy flowers appear before leaves in mid to late spring. May rebloom in summer.
Bloom time
Spring; Summer
Fruit color
Brown/Copper; Red/Burgundy
Fruit type
Aggregate; Follicle
Fruit detail
An aggregate fruit of woody follicles seeds have a fleshy red outer coating called an aril.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Unknown
Food & Medicine
Fruit type
Aggregate; Follicle
Landscape Use
Landscape location
Lawn; Patio; Small Space; Woodland
Design feature
Border; Foundation Planting; Hedge; Screen/Privacy; Specimen
Garden tags
#foundation planting #flowers late spring #large flowers #deciduous shrub #showy flowers #deciduous #air pollution tolerant #slow growing #specimen #clay soils tolerant #purple flowers #border back #border middle #lawn planting #flowering tree #fall color bronze #leathery leaves #courtyard garden #fall color yellow #deciduous tree #small tree #fall interest #fragrant flowers #small spaces #flowers mid-spring #hedge #patio #woodland #shrub border
Problems & Resistance
Insect problems
Magnolia Scale; Yellow Poplar Weevil
Disease problems
Sooty Molds
Resistant to
Pollution

Planted at Hunnicutt

Nobody’s planted this one yet.