These glorious magnolia blooms come from a species I’ve long admired. The neighbors down the street had an immense magnolia tree in their shaded backyard. If you followed the woods behind our house far enough, you would come to a bank which led up to the back of their yard. In the spring, through curtains of chartreuse foliage on yews and similar landscaping shrubs, one could spy the glorious, if brief, flowering of the magnolia. It took center stage for just a few days. The warmer it was, the sooner the show would be over. Some years I missed it completely.
Their sweet scent carried on the wind, though I cannot say that is what drew me to the yard. Mostly I happened there by chance, and out of the corner of my eye I caught their show. Keeping careful watch on the windows of the house, I’d steal across the year, quickly pick up one or two fallen blooms, and scoot away holding the delicious blossom up to my nose while inhaling the delicate perfume.
Their one major drawback is their messiness ~ the blooms drop and quickly decay, leaving a mushy mess that must be dealt with, usually right after the initial clean-up of a yard takes place. Their thick leaves are also the kind that don’t degrade with any efficiency. Better to admire these from a distance, and I do.
There are varieties that bloom in shades of yellow during the summer ~ the tulip magnolia is one I believe~ and I’ve thought of finding a place for one of these. They seem more exotic, the blooms coming so far after the initial flush of blossoms. One of these grows in Boston, and I seek out its flowers in the high heat of summer, pretending I’m a Southern lady gasping for a mint julep or a charged adult glass of sweet tea.
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