Did you know that the flower shape of magnolias is considered very original? This means that scientists today assume that the flowers of the first flowering plants about 140 million years ago were very similar to those of today's magnolias. These assumptions are supported by fossil finds from the Cretaceous period.
The Magnolia family (Magnoliaceae) is currently thought by some scientists to contain the genus Magnolia with over 200 species and the genus Liriodendron with only two species. Today, the natural occurrence of the magnolia family is limited to America and Asia. Until the ice ages, magnolias were also widespread in Central Europe. In our gardens, magnolias are very popular flowering trees and shrubs; particularly widespread are the star magnolia (Magnolia stellata) from Japan and the tulip magnolia (Magnolia xsoulangiana), a hybrid of the Yulan magnolia (Magnolia denudata) and the purple magnolia (Magnolia liliiflora), both from China.
Their flowers appear in early spring before the leaves in white or pink and are very sensitive to frost. Magnolias with their typical flowers are considered to be typical beetle flowers, i.e. the pollination work is carried out by the oldest flower-visiting insects in the history of the earth, namely beetles.
There is an abundance of differently shaped flowers, sometimes they are so inconspicuous that you may not even recognise them as flowers. But all flowers serve the same purpose, they enable the plants to reproduce sexually. Take a close look at the different flowers and discover their individual components. Now, in April, many trees are beginning to blossom.