San Francisco Botanical Garden

Common name: Campbell's magnolia, cup and saucer magnolia, pink tulip tree (English); Lal Chanp (Nepali)

Family: Magnoliaceae (Magnolia)

Synonym: Yulania campbellii

Distribution: Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Tibet

IUCN Red list: Least concern

Life form: Deciduous tree

Flower color: Pink, White

Flowering Time at SFBG: January, February

Fruiting Time at SFBG: August, September

Height: 30 m

Spread: 15 m

Magnificent Magnolia Facts: This individual (XY-0100*A) is believed to be the oldest Magnolia in our collection at almost 100 years young. It was received as a 2 year old tree in 1924 and planted in Golden Gate Park by Eric Walther, the Garden’s first Director. It was subsequently moved to its current location in 1939 and bloomed one year later. At age 17, this specimen had the first documented bloom of its species in the US. In the 1950s approximately 20 more Magnolia campbellii were grafted to Magnolia kobus root stock and planted throughout the garden. Today M. campbellii is the most common Magnolia we have in the garden with 18 specimens and 15 cultivars and hybrids.

Magnolia campbellii was described based on trees seen in Sikkim, today a part of India, by naturalist, Sir Joseph Hooker, the future Director of the Royal Botanic Garden, Kew. He named the species after Dr. Archibald Campbell, the first superintendent of Darjeeling, India (1840-1862). In 1849 Archibald traveled with Hooker throughout Sikkim on an expedition during which they were imprisoned for over a month. In the wild M. campbellii grows at elevation between 2,100-3,330 m.

Growing Conditions: Sun or partial shade; prefers well-drained soil and shelter from wind.

Botanical Description: Trees, to 30 m tall. Bark grayish brown. Twigs yellowish green when young and reddish brown when old, glabrous. Stipular scar short and small. Petiole 1-5 cm, pilose; leaf blade elliptic, oblong-ovate, or broadly obovate, 10-23(-33) × 4.5-10(-14) cm, papery, abaxially grayish green and white appressed pilose, adaxially deep green and glabrous, midvein and secondary veins appressed long sericeous, secondary veins 12-16 on each side of midvein, base rounded to broadly cuneate and usually unequal, apex acute to shortly acuminate. Peduncle thick and strong, ca. 2 cm, glabrous or slightly pilose. Flower buds ovoid, ca. 2.5 cm, pale yellow sericeous. Flowers appearing before leaves, 15-25(-35) cm in diam., slightly fragrant. Tepals 12-16, dark red, pink, or sometimes white, obovate-spoon-shaped to oblong-ovate, 6-14 × 4-6 cm, base gradually narrowed and forming a claw; outer 3 patent, reflexed, or pendulous; tepals of innermost whorl broadly ovate to suborbicular, 8-10 × 4-6 cm, erect, surrounding stamens and gynoecium. Stamens 1-3 cm; filaments purplish red. Gynoecium green, 2-3 cm; stigmas red. Fruiting peduncle thick and strong, 1-1.5 cm in diam., glabrous. Fruit purplish red turning brown, terete, 11-20 × 2.5-3 cm, at first erect then pendulous; mature carpels firmly connate, thin, dehiscing into 2 valves along dorsal sutures. Seeds cordate, 1-1.2 × 0.8-1 cm, laterally flat. (Flora of China)