Swamp Magnolia is a stunning southeastern native tree that thrives where other magnolias struggle: in wet, boggy soils and challenging urban settings. Hardy from zones 5 to 10, this botanical variety of Magnolia virginiana grows as a graceful 15 to 60 feet tall depending on your climate, bearing exquisite cup-shaped flowers from May through August that fill the air with a sweet, lemony fragrance. Unlike its relatives, it tolerates the moisture and shade that typically trouble magnolias, making it an exceptional choice for rain gardens and low-lying landscapes where you'd never expect such refinement to flourish.
Partial Sun
Moderate
5-10
720in H x 720in W
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Moderate
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The fragrant, cup-shaped blooms arriving in waves from late spring through summer are genuinely intoxicating, carrying a distinctive lemony sweetness. In the northern reaches of its range, it often grows as a multi-stemmed shrub with an open, spreading form, while in the Deep South it becomes a proper tree towering 60 feet tall. What sets this variety apart is its remarkable tolerance for the very conditions that defeat most magnolias: wet, boggy soils, shade, and urban pollution all suit it fine.
Swamp Magnolia excels as a flowering tree in landscape designs, particularly in rain gardens and other moisture-rich settings where most ornamental trees would decline. Its showy, fragrant blooms and attractive fruit make it a focal point during the long bloom season from May through August. It handles urban conditions with grace, tolerating the compacted soils, air pollution, and heat stress of city gardens while still producing its signature lemony-scented flowers.
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“Magnolia virginiana is native to the southeastern United States, ranging north along the Atlantic coast as far as New York. This variety, australis, represents the southern expression of a species that has adapted across a vast range, from tidal marshes and swamps to upland forests. The species has long been valued by native peoples and colonial settlers for both its ornamental beauty and the subtle fragrance of its flowers, and its natural resilience in wetland habitats made it a logical choice for cultivation in challenging garden conditions.”