Saucer Magnolia
One of the three essential flowering trees - Magnolia, Cherry, and Crabapple - the Saucer Magnolia can bloom as early as late March, long before it, or anything else, has leafed out. Because of the early spring flowering, the bloom is often affected by frost, which can turn the lovely whitish-purple flowers to a slimy, shriveled mess.
Small-sized tree, up to 20 feet. Can be a single or more commonly multi-stem. Main branches low on trunk, variable spread.
• East side of Wien Walk near the Central Park Zoo, East 63rd Street near Fifth Avenue
• East Drive at 83rd Street
• Obelisk, east side at 81st Street
• Shakespeare Garden, west side between 79th and 80th Streets
• South of Rumsey Playfield
• East Drive at 68th Street
• Upper Dene
• Ramble, mid-Park from 73rd to 79th Streets
• 88th Street and Central Park West
• Bethesda Terrace, mid-Park at 72nd Street
• Conservatory Garden
 Saucer Magnolia Bark
Smooth, mottled silvery-gray. Very attractive, making a significant addition to the winter landscape.
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 Saucer Magnolia Flower
Large, goblet-shaped, 4 to 8 inches, appearing before tree leafs out. Petals, which are actually called tepals, are white to purplish-pink.
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 Saucer Magnolia Fruit
A 4-inch long cone-like structure (but not a cone) from which orange to red seeds emerge.
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 Saucer Magnolia Leaf
Flat, ovate with smooth margins. 3 to 6 inches long, dark green on top, paler green underneath.
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Ohio Public Library Information Network (OPLIN), www.inspire.net/trees (fruit)
Matthew Brown, Central Park Conservancy
Neil Calvanese, Central Park Conservancy
Related Links
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Flowering Dogwood
One of the most spectacular small ornamental flowering trees, the graceful, compact Flowering Dogwood is strikingly beautiful in the spring.