What is "magnolia grandiflora"

Magnolia \Mag*no"li*a\, n. [NL. Named after Pierre Magnol, professor of botany at Montpellier, France, in the 17th century.] (Bot.) A genus of American and Asiatic trees, with aromatic bark and large sweet-scented whitish or reddish flowers.

Note: Magnolia grandiflora has coriaceous shining leaves and very fragrant blossoms. It is common from North Carolina to Florida and Texas, and is one of the most magnificent trees of the American forest. The sweet bay ( Magnolia glauca)is a small tree found sparingly as far north as Cape Ann. Other American species are Magnolia Umbrella, Magnolia macrophylla, Magnolia Fraseri, Magnolia acuminata, and Magnolia cordata. Magnolia conspicua and Magnolia purpurea are cultivated shrubs or trees from Eastern Asia. Magnolia Campbellii, of India, has rose-colored or crimson flowers.

Magnolia warbler (Zo["o]l.), a beautiful North American wood warbler ( Dendroica maculosa). The rump and under parts are bright yellow; the breast and belly are spotted with black; the under tail coverts are white; the crown is ash.

Magnolia grandiflora, commonly known as the southern magnolia or bull bay, is a tree of the family Magnoliaceae native to the southeastern United States, from coastal North Carolina to central Florida, and west to East Texas and Oklahoma. Reaching in height, it is a large, striking evergreen tree with large, dark green leaves up to long and wide, and large, white, fragrant flowers up to in diameter. Although endemic to the lowland subtropical forests on the Gulf and south Atlantic coastal plain, magnolia grandiflora is widely cultivated in warmer areas around the world. The timber is hard and heavy, and has been used commercially to make furniture, pallets, and veneer.

The Magnolia grandiflora at 679 Lafayette Avenue, Brooklyn is the only tree that is a designated New York City landmark. The specimen is a rare example of a flourishing laurel magnolia growing as far north as New York. The tree was brought as a seedling from North Carolina and planted around 1885 by William Lemken. Beginning in the 1950s, it was protected by Hattie Carthan, who enlisted neighborhood schoolchildren to help raise money to protect the tree, which was threatened by the construction of a parking lot.

After the tree's designation as a landmark, Carthan founded Magnolia Tree Earth Center, a non-profit focused on urban beautification and environmental awareness. The center is housed in the brownstone adjacent to the tree.