Magnolia Jane in the Summer! Once the Spring blooms are gone, what does this tree look like? Magnolia Jane is more than just another pretty flowering tree.
I admit it: we were completely entranced with the gorgeous blooms on the Magnolia Jane shrubs we purchased way back in 2010. And the blooms are exactly why most people want them in their landscapes.
I wrote an entire post about this:
Magnolia Jane: you absolutely need this stunning flowering tree!
We had a hard freeze last Spring (2016), which of course broke my Magnolia Jane-loving heart. Blooms that were open just froze and began turning brown . . .
Even though the Spring blooms were ruined from the freeze, I wasn’t sure how our Magnolia Jane trees would look once they fully leafed out.
In fact, I had a reader ask me last year for pictures of Magnolia Jane in the Summer, so I put together these photos for you (and for her!)
Magnolia Jane in the Summer!
Our three Magnolia Jane trees were full of their lush green leaves just a short while after the hard freeze I mentioned above.
Here are the three trees as they looked in July 2016 . . .
Although the hard freeze ruined the blooms and flower buds, it didn’t ruin the leaves that appeared thereafter!
(Those are Red Yuccas in front of the Magnolia Jane trees, another one of my favorite plants!)
You can see in the photo below how I trimmed off the foliage from the bottom of each Magnolia Jane, to grow them as trees instead of flowering shrubs.
In the right spot, your Magnolia Jane might give you a few blooming surprises during the Summer season!
Below, the arrow points to a single bloom, during July 2016 . . .
Our Magnolia Jane trees are now in their 8th season in our backyard so they’re well established and happy, meaning we do get sporadic blooms during the Summer.
The trees were first planted in 2010 . . . and didn’t quite reach the top of our 6-foot fence.
We love having them next to our Dappled Willow shrubs!
In the Spring, we enjoy the fuchsia blossoms of the Magnolia Janes, along with the salmon pink leaves of our Dappled Willow . . .
Fast forward several more years, and we have quite a living wall — much nicer to look at than our vinyl fencing!
I took this picture yesterday in the rain, so you can see how the Magnolia Jane trees currently look. The Dappled Willow “wall” is to the right going up the backyard toward the fence gate.
(And yes, we happily replaced our lawn with pretty gravel which I’ll share in a future post here!)
I love the easy green color of each Magnolia Jane in the Summer, just as I love the pretty pussy willow-like catkins of Magnolia Jane in the Winter season . . .
For those of you baking in the Summer heat right now, here’s another picture of our Magnolia Janes during a previous snowy Winter. The twigs — especially the newer ones — have a nice reddish tint.
Did seeing all of that snow cool you off?
I hope these photos help you see that Magnolia Janes have much to offer even when they’re not blooming!
For pictures (as well as helpful growing info) of our Magnolia Janes in bloom and our Dappled Willow living wall — please click on the links in the “Related Posts” below!
Happy gardening!
~Laura
Thank you Laura!! They are beautiful!! I planted mine as a focal trees in the middle of my yard (well I have two). I’m really hoping they grow to be trees! I’m worried they may grow to look like shrubs. I’m very thankful for your photos!! Its hard to find pictures of these trees/shrubs other than when they are in full bloom.. They say they can get 15′ high and 10′ wide. How tall would you say yours were at the time of the photos, looks like maybe 12′ ? Do you consider them to be trees or shrubs? They are lovely!! Thank you for sharing!
Hi Jane, yes you’ve got good eyes: they were about 12 feet tall when I took these pictures! I definitely consider them trees, and have removed some of the lower leaves so that the “trunks” stand out more. Magnolia Janes tend to grow up, rather than just growing “out” — so I think you’ll have the trees (versus shrubs) you are hoping for!
I loooove your post!!! I actually just got 3 magnolia Jane and I was becoming hesitant to plant by a fence! But it looks beautiful!
Great job!
I’m so glad my pictures were helpful Ana! Hope you stop back and let me know how they are doing!
Hi Laura. My name is Rian, and from northern Minnesota. I just received my Jane Magnoila today 5/24/18, a little later than I preferred to as I was planning for earlier this spring, but I am glad I held out a little longer. I am in zone 3 but I have had a lot of luck with plants for zone 4. The Jane was packed and shipped with care, I was so pleased to see. I had already had a previous hole for it that I lost a spruce in. So I kept it well cultivated until my Jane arrived. We had a very cold wet late spring and freezing rain led to ice storms etc…. our winter are similar as our summers are also. Hot and humid kicked in this week. I am an avid Gardner and love to land scape. My neighbors are always complement on all the work since I bought the property. Iam glad to stumble onto your blog and see the phots and read the help little hints you mentioned. It was ironic to how I had planted it just the way you mentioned. I am going to start a calendar diary with phots of course for the 1st season. I am so excited and will be the envy of the neighbor hood. LOL. I will start taking photo’s soon, yet to snap one tomorrow the her first, the as I see hoe she does. Thank you again for your site and it gave me a little more confidence.
With great anticipation,
Rian
Hello Rian,
I’m so glad you found my info and pictures helpful! I hope the trees are coming along nicely. The first season can be tough sometimes, but next Spring you will hopefully be enjoying lots of pretty flowers!
I picked up a small magnolia Jane at a Kmart for $15. I planted it in a spot in my yard that I’m regretting. It is thriving. It has been there for about 4 years now. It is over 6 ft tall. It also has several blossoms on it at this time (August). Do you think I can transplant in the fall? Thank you for your advice.
Hi Mary — First off, congratulations for purchasing an inexpensive Magnolia Jane and have it thriving! That’s actually a GREAT problem to have. 🙂 When Magnolia Janes are happy, yes they will produce blooms sporadically in the Summertime, which is a wonderful added bonus!
For transplanting — Fall is actually a great time to transplant trees and shrubs. Since your Magnolia Jane is so tall, I’d suggest hiring landscapers to properly dig it up and then move it and replant it for you. This might sound like a small job, but many landscapers are only too happy to have smaller jobs in the Fall when their main rush of business is starting to become slower.
Of course, you could do this yourself, but I’d suggest having a few strong people help you, as you want to keep as much of the root ball — and roots — as possible when you’re transplanting. A 6-foot tree like yours would be very expensive to purchase new, so I know you’ll want to take great care in transplanting it.
For helpful tips on transplanting — search for the Arbor Day Foundation, then click over to their blog and search for an article titled “Tree Care Tips for Fall Planting.” I hope this helps! Good luck and hope your Magnolia Jane thrives in its new home!
Hi, Laura! Thanks so much for your posts, especially on the Magnolia Jane. What does this plant do in the fall? Is it particularly pretty?
Thanks for your question Kathleen! I came up with a full article to answer your question! I just published it and you can read it here: https://www.petscribbles.com/jane-magnolia-tree-in-fall-does-it-have-any-color/