Sweetbay Magnolia with smooth gray trunks at Indian Creek Yacht and Country Club

The lovely Sweetbay Magnolia, Magnolia virginiana, goes by many common names, including Sweet Magnolia, Swamp Magnolia, Swamp Bay, Laurel, White Magnolia, and Beaver Tree to name just a few. Regardless of the name, it is a spectacular small tree in every season and we are lucky it is a common understory tree along coastal areas of the Northern Neck. Sweetbay Magnolias occur from the Gulf Coast and north up the Atlantic coast to NY. In the deep South, Sweetbay Magnolias often remain evergreen through the winters and may reach 60’ or more in height, but in our area Sweetbays are typically multi-stemmed small trees reaching 15- 30’ in height.

Beginning in May and continuing through June, fragrant creamy white flowers open at the ends of branches, emitting a delicious lemony fragrance. Each cup-shaped flower is about 3” across, with 9 to 12 tepals (the sepals and petals are indistinguishable) with a velvety texture that reminds me of my Mother’s kid gloves. The Magnolias are early flowering plants that evolved before bees, so are pollinated by evolutionary older beetles and offer sturdy, sweetly scented flowers. Sweetbays often continue to bloom sporadically through summer, offering welcome fragrance and beauty. In the fall, these small trees are bedecked with small, showy cone-like fruits, each about 2” long. These ‘cones’ are actually an aggregate of follicles (cavities), each opening to reveal bright red fleshy seeds that entice hungry songbirds. The leaves themselves are striking, and nearly as beautiful as the flowers. They have a spicy fragrance when rubbed, and a dramatic two-toned appearance - smooth dark gray green above, and silvery white below, almost with an icy bluish tint. The leaves shimmer delightfully in a summer breeze, as the silvery undersides flash and flutter, adding a refreshing coolness to the summer landscape. The leaves emerge from the ends of the branches, creating an open look that reveals the beautiful smooth gray trunks. The trunks are picturesque themselves, with a spreading, slightly twisted habit. All of these features make Sweetbay Magnolia an enchanting small tree to enjoy up close and personal. Perfect planted near a deck or patio, their beauty and fragrance are sure to encourage lingering over a cool glass of wine or lemonade, or dinner with friends. Sweetbay Magnolias also make beautiful small specimen trees, yet are also at home in a mixed shrub border or planted along a stream, pond, or low area.

In the wild Sweetbay Magnolias are frequently found in low flatwoods, in both tidal and alluvial swamps, in acidic seepage swamps and bogs, and along streams and rivers. In our gardens, they are not only beautiful, but are very adaptable, tolerating wet soils, heavy clay soils, and urban sites and air pollution. They thrive in full sun or part shade and have virtually no serious pests or diseases. They are relatively slow growing, and rarely need pruning or maintenance. If pruning is needed, it is best done after flowering.

Sweetbay Magnolias enchant not only humans, but are a larval host for the beautiful Eastern Tiger Swallowtail butterfly as well as the showy Sweetbay Silk Moth. Beetles and other moths are attracted to the flowers for their nectar, while songbirds relish the seeds in fall. Early colonists used the fleshy roots as bait in traps to catch beavers, thus the common name Beavertree.

Photos by Betsy Washington

Plant of the Month May 2020: Sweetbay Magnolia