Magnolia obovate. A subtropical tree unique for Russia has blossomed in Kunashir Medicinal properties and medical use
The first flowers of magnolia from below white (Magnolia hypoleuca) were noted by employees of the Kurilsky nature reserve on the Stolbovskaya ecological trail, RIA SakhalinMedia reports with reference to the reserve's website. Kunashir Island in the Sakhalin Region is the only place in Russia where this amazing and rare representative magnoliaceae family.
Experiments on the introduction of magnolia into the culture were first carried out in Russia in the middle of the 19th century. Now artificial plantations of this subtropical species can be found on Black Sea coast, in the Crimea and Azerbaijan. In the Far East, more than 15 specimens of magnolia bottom-white can be seen in the botanical garden of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences in Vladivostok.
The first magnolia flowers from below are white on the Stolbovskaya ecological trail.
Magnolia bottom-white is listed in the Red Book of Russia, where it has the status: "Species in danger of extinction." Magnolia from below-white is protected in the reserve "Kurilsky".
In Kunashir, as well as in the botanical gardens of megacities, there is a tradition of organizing excursions to observe the flowering of certain plant species. For such purposes, on the Sea of Okhotsk coast, not far from Yuzhno-Kurilsk, since 2001, under the auspices of the reserve, ecological trail"Stolbovskaya". One of the highlights that take place here in early July is the magnolia bloom. In spite of big size flowers (up to 20 cm in diameter), having a white color, it is very difficult to notice this plant in the forest. The flowers of most trees along the trail are at the height of a four-story building. The earliest start of magnolia bloom, according to long-term data, was noted on the trail on June 26th. On average, the flowering period fits into the period from 2 to 24 July. The latest end of flowering was recorded here on 5 August.
locals photographed with magnolia.
severe weather in the process of evolution, they could not stop the advance of this subtropical tree to the north. Thus, a common and numerous plant of the Japanese island of Hokkaido successfully settled in a fir- deciduous forests mostly on slopes west coast Kunashir. Being the most winter-hardy member of its family, magnolia still faced certain difficulties on the island and was unable to increase its population for several reasons. One of them - hypersensitivity young plants to mechanical damage. So, frequent gusty winds, breaking the shoots and damaging the crown of grown trees, do not allow young plants to rise from under the canopy of a dark coniferous forest. Those who managed to win back living space plants will be able to bear fruit only after 15 years.
Magnolia buds.
Mature plants ready to propagate face a new problem - unfavorable weather for flowering. On average, the magnolia bloom period (July) in Kunashir accounts for 23 days with drizzling rain and fog. Obviously, such weather reduces the activity of pollinating insects and reduces the likelihood of plant fertilization. An important factor that reduces the productivity of magnolia is anthropogenic interference. By picking flowers and breaking magnolia shoots, a person does not leave a chance to survive and leave offspring to these rare exotic plants.
The Department: angiosperms (Magnoliophyta).
Class: dicotyledons (Dicotyledones).
Order: magnolia flowers (Magnoliales).
Family: magnoliaceae (Magnoliaceae).
Genus: magnolia (Magnolia).
View: magnolia cylindrical (M. cylindrica).
The genus Magnolia is named after the French botanist Pierre Magnol. In this article we will talk about the biology of the development of the magnolia tree, the meaning and use of magnolia in the economy, we will bring to your attention a few interesting facts about this plant, we will tell you where magnolia grows and, of course, we will show photos of magnolia flowers, amazing in their beauty.
Where does magnolia cylindrica grow?
The natural habitat of the cylindrical magnolia is limited to the lower reaches of the Yangtse River (China). It is also bred in many botanical gardens in Asia, Europe and America.
The species prefers the edges of forests and thickets of shrubs at an altitude of up to 1700 m above sea level.
Magnolia cylindric - slender deciduous tree up to 9 m high. Crown width - up to 4.5 m. Leaves are simple, petiolate, obovate plate, up to 15 cm in length. They have a dark green glossy upper side and a short pubescent lower side.
Magnolia tree flowers and their photos
Magnolia flowers are bisexual, regular, up to 8 cm in diameter. Seeds are orange, disc-shaped, up to 1 cm in diameter and up to 7 cm long.
As you can see in the photo, the magnolia tree at the time of flowering is literally strewn with delicate pink and white flowers. The tepals are snow-white with a pink blurred spot at the base. Fruits ripen from the flowers, which are oblong pink multi-leaflets.
Magnolia cylindrical propagates by seeds and vegetatively - layering, cuttings of shoots. Magnolia flowers bloom in April and adorn the plant for about two months. Pollinated by insects, usually beetles. The fruits ripen in September - October. When they open, the seeds hang outward on thin stalks, which birds peck at and spread.
The use of magnolia
Magnolia was cultivated back in Ancient China. Today it is used in the landscaping of tropical and subtropical belts. Most often, these are large-flowered magnolias (M. grandiflora), star-shaped (M. stellata), Kobushi (M. kobus), lily-colored (M. liliiflora) and Sulange (M. soulangeana).
The magnolia flower has retained many primitive features: it is radially symmetrical, its parts are located on the receptacle in a spiral and do not grow together, and the number of petals, stamens and pistils is not constant.
The wood of the plant is easily processed and resistant to decay, it has a beautiful texture, which leads to the widespread use of magnolia in the manufacture of various household utensils. In Japan and China, magnolia is traditionally used to make knife handles, dishes, furniture and jewelry boxes. Leaves containing alkaloids, glycosides and essential oil are used in medicine in the treatment of hypertension, diseases of the digestive and nervous systems.
Magnolia is poisonous, so it is better not to use its huge flowers for making bouquets.
Pierre Magnol (1638-1715), after whom the magnolia was named, was a French botanist who made major contributions to plant systematics. He proposed a set of features according to which they began to be attributed to different botanical families.
Judging by the fossil remains, the magnolia appeared at least 90 million years ago. She grew up all over northern hemisphere until the last ice age, dividing a wide range into Asian and North American parts.
According to Japanese legend, once a girl named Keiko made beautiful flowers out of sheets of white paper. To breathe life into origami, she gave each of them a drop of blood. This is why magnolia petals are a pale pink color.
Magnolia seeds have a juicy bright shell - sarcotesta, which makes them appetizing for birds.
The magnolia fruit resembles a cone. It consists of individual fruitlets-leaflets, each of which contains one or two seeds.
Why is it listed in the Red Book? Magnolia cylindrical is harmed by deforestation in places of growth, as well as poaching collection of flower buds for medicinal raw materials. Today the plant has a VU protection category.
Other representatives of the genus listed in the Red Book of the World: Chinese magnolias (M. sinensis), Mahecha (M. mahechae), omeyenskaya (M. omeiensis), Wolf (M. wolfii), Cespedes (M. cespedesii), Espinal (M. espinalii), Guatape (M. guatapensis), yarumalenskaya (M. yarumalensis) and Tsena (M. zenii) belong to the protection category CR. In addition, 24 representatives of the genus are assigned to the EN protection category, 14 - to the VU category, 6 - to the LC category. Two more species - Griffith magnolia (M. griffithii) and Henry (M. henryi) - are assigned the category DD.
Magnolia obovate is a variety of flowering plants, namely a deciduous tree that forms large pure stands. Most often found in mountainous areas, in particular, in broad-leaved or mixed forests, mostly singly, rarely forms small groups. May be adjacent to:
- all types of maple;
- Japanese beech;
- curly oak;
- hearty hornbeam;
- any kind of birch.
The most common places for germination are:
- the Black Sea coast of the Caucasus;
- the south coast of Crimea;
- central and western part of Ukraine;
- Japan;
- Kurile Islands;
- Azerbaijan;
- Vladivostok, Voronezh and Moscow region.
Botanical description
Magnolia obovate is a tree that can reach 30 meters in height, and the trunk diameter is often 60-70 centimeters. It is characterized by rapid growth, as well as a wide pyramidal and loose crown.
Also among the features worth highlighting:
- kidneys - up to 9 centimeters long, and also not more than 1 centimeter in diameter. They have a light green tint, and in autumn they turn yellowish;
- leaves - grow at the tips of shoots and often accumulate in groups of no more than a dozen. Parameters - length - up to 40 centimeters, and width about 20 centimeters. The leaf blade is rounded in shape, but suddenly narrows towards the end, having a blunt apex. The surface is green and bare above, and yellowish-blue with veins below, less often bare;
- petioles - no more than 40 millimeters in length;
- flowers - often they are white or creamy white, often complemented by a yellowish-green tint. Cup-shaped and unique aroma. Their diameter can vary from 13 to 18 centimeters;
- perianth - includes an average of 12 lobules. The outer ones are of a red or pinkish hue with blunt ends, and the inner ones are obovate, tapering towards the base, up to 4 centimeters wide and up to 8 centimeters long;
- stamens - no more than 20 millimeters long;
- gynoecium - the diameter and length are the same and are 3 centimeters.
The flowering period begins only after the leaves bloom - often this happens in early or mid-summer.
Magnolia obovate has fruits - these are red prefabricated leaflets that look like an ellipse, while the length is up to 18 centimeters and the width is 60 millimeters. The seeds are egg-shaped and have a fleshy rind and are less than a centimeter in size. Fruiting is observed in September or October.
People who vacationed in the Crimea or the Caucasus, probably, more than once had to see magnolia and, most likely, even its various types - evergreen and deciduous, with white, pink, purple flowers. These magnolias are, of course, beautiful, but artificially bred by man (or, as they say, introduced). The collection of magnolias is especially large in the Batumi Botanical Garden. Individual magnolia trees grow in many of our cities, including Ukraine, Kaliningrad region and other areas with mild winters.
We are also interested in the only type of naturally growing magnolia in our country - obovate magnolia, the range of which is limited to several locations in the vicinity of the village of Alekhin on the island of Kunashir (southern Kuriles). Outside our country, this species is found in Japan and China. Magnolia grows in broad-leaved forests, on rich, well-moistened soils, usually in the mountains, rising to 1700-2000 m above sea level. Our only population of magnolia obovate is very small.
Once on the island of Kunashir, we first of all specified how we could get to Alekhine. On the way to Alyokhino, we accidentally met the Moscow zoologist A. M. Danilevsky, who, as it turned out, had been living in this village for about a month, studying endemic insect species found only in this place. He knew the area well and promised to show us the blooming magnolia. I must say that if young trees (undergrowth) of magnolia can be found in some places in the south of the island without much difficulty, then finding a flowering specimen is a great success.
Having settled down on the spot, we immediately asked A. M. Danilevsky to take us to the magnolia. To do this, it was necessary to walk two kilometers and climb a hill overgrown with broadleaf forest. Although the distance that we had to cover was small, but the lack of roads and dense undergrowth, intertwined with lianas, made movement very difficult. At first we came across several young magnolias, thin, with large leaves and, of course, not yet blooming. We kept moving up. Finally, we were at the top of the hill, then we went down a little to the opposite slope and saw a powerful straight-stemmed tree (over 15 m high), illuminated by the setting sun, with a well-developed crown, in the depths of which matte white lights flickered. These lights turned out to be creamy white magnolia flowers, unusually large (up to 15 cm in diameter) and fragrant.
Magnolia obovate has a powerful straight trunk up to 0.5 m in diameter, with gray fissured bark. Young shoots are pubescent. Wintering buds are smooth. The leaves are very large, up to 40 cm long and 25 cm wide, obovate, smooth above, bluish below, pubescent, petioles up to 5 cm long. Blooms at the same time as the leaves open. Flowers are erect. Petals - 6-9, creamy white, slightly fleshy, up to 11 cm long; sepals only 3, similar to petals, but smaller (up to 8 cm in length). Stamens are numerous. The fruit is complex, resembling a cylindrical cone up to 18 cm long and 5 cm wide (consists of numerous one-seeded leaflets sitting on an elongated cone-shaped bed).
Magnolia blooms in May - June, bears fruit in August - September. This is an ancient relic species. Previously, magnolias were distributed much more widely, far to the north, but due to cooling, they retreated sharply to the south. Magnolia obovate is of great scientific and economic interest as a valuable tree for urban greening. It began to be introduced into culture from the middle of the 19th century, but, of course, only in areas with warm climate. It grows in many settlements Ukraine and the Caucasus.
Magnolia obovate (Magnolia obovata = Magnolia hypoleuca) is known in Japan as Magnolia white .
Discovered and first described in 1794. A tall deciduous tree with a pyramidal or spreading crown, reaching 30 m in nature, and 15 m in cultivation and 15 m crown width. The bark of the trunk is smooth light gray. The bark of young shoots is brown-chestnut, smooth, with a bluish bloom and large lenticels. Later, the shoots become thick, brittle, purple-silver with characteristically protruding leaf marks. The buds are large, mixed, purple-green, naked, located at the ends of the shoots, vegetative up to 4 cm long, generative up to 8 cm long.
The leaves are very large, obovate (40-60 x 20 cm), broadly wedge-shaped at the base and sharply obtusely pointed at the top, green above, light, bluish-gray below. First, blooming - densely pubescent, then almost naked with noticeably protruding veins. The leaves are usually collected at the ends of the shoots in 8-10 pieces. Petioles 2-4 cm long.
Blooms from mid-May to June after the leaves appear. Large cup-shaped flowers appear above the whorl of leaves, up to 20 cm d, creamy-white in color with a strong, spicy aroma. Sepals three, petals 9-12, 3 outer - greenish, sometimes with a pinkish tinge at the base. The inner 9 petals are creamy white, obovate, 8-12 cm long. Numerous filaments are purple-red, anthers are creamy yellow.
It blooms not profusely, but steadily up to 25 days, sometimes in dry and hot summers - again, in August, from the buds of the current year. Bright red to purple-scarlet with beak-shaped outgrowths, the fruits of the multileaf reach 20 cm in length. The seeds are black, striated, 1.2-1.3 cm, covered with a red-purple fleshy seed coat (sarcotesta).
Homeland - Japan. There is a small population on about. Kunashir (Kuril Islands). The only type of magnolia found in the wild in Russia. It is the easternmost of the Asian magnolias. In Russia, it naturally grows only in the Sakhalin region on the island of Kunashir. Here it is found in the region of Mendeleev and Tretyakov volcanoes, and on the territory of the Kuril state reserve found only in the Alekhinskoye forestry in the area of Lake Goryachego and the vicinity of the village of Alekhin.
In the south of Kunashir obovate magnolia grows in deciduous forests. Its locations are more often confined to the middle part of the slopes of the southern exposure. Occurs in the undergrowth of scalloped oak forests (Petukhova, 1991). These habitats are the northeastern border of the range, which through the island of Hokkaido goes to Japan to the islands of Ryukyu, Honshu, Shikoku, rising to a height of up to 1700m. On the mainland, obovate magnolia is found in central regions China. Its reserves in the natural flora of Russia are small. Listed in the Red Book.
It has been cultivated since 1865. More than 15 specimens of obovate magnolia are cultivated at the BS Institute of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences. At the age of 13, the plants have a height of 2.8 m. At the age of 14, they reach a height of 4.5 m. Magnolia obovate is the ancestor of the introduction of magnolias to southern Primorye. The introduction of this species from the Kuril Islands to Primorye was first carried out by T.V. Samoilov, but there are no publications about this. We know that out of two specimens planted by her in the arboretum of the Gorno-Taiga Station of the Far East Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, one entered the fruiting season at the age of over 30 years and bears fruit very irregularly. Typically, magnolia obovate plants begin to bear fruit at the age of about 15 years.
In October 1970, with Fr. Kunashir was brought 1 specimen of this species at the age of 5 years and planted in a permanent place in the botanical garden on the outskirts of Vladivostok. However, two years later it was broken and died. It should be noted that magnolia obovate does not tolerate mechanical damage to the base of the trunk, it rarely recovers from stump growth and usually dies. True, in our practice there was a case when a dried magnolia obovate tree found a living bud at the base of the trunk two years after the death of the plant and began to grow.
Another attempt was made to introduce this species from the Kuril Islands. In 1984, an employee of the botanical garden V.G. Ermolaev brought 3 specimens of obovate magnolia from about. Kunashir (Valentin key, near Tretyakovo). Of the 3 plants, only one is currently preserved, which grows very slowly, has winter damage, which confirms our conclusions about the inadvisability of introducing from the Kuril Islands to Primorsky Krai with a pronounced monsoon climate(Petukhova, 1981). In 1988, the seeds of the Kiev reproduction were sown. In Kyiv, M. obovata plants were grown from seeds obtained in 1961 from the place of natural growth (Minchenko, 1982). Plants grown from seeds of the Kiev reproduction are quite successfully cultivated and form the basis of the collection of this species in the Botanical Garden-Institute of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
The leaf begins to turn yellow in October, then turns brown and falls off. By the end of October, leaf fall usually ends. In the conditions of southern Primorye, the annual growth fully matures, it can reach 50 cm, the apical bud is fully formed. In Kyiv, at the age of 17, it reaches 5.5 m, and at 35 - 8 m in height. Flowering in Kyiv - the second half of May, in natural conditions on about. Kunashir flowering begins on July 1. Plants cultivated in the Botanical Garden-Institute of the Far Eastern Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences bloomed at the age of 14 years. Flowering starts June 18th. Duration - 12-15 days. Successfully grown in Lviv and Chernivtsi. In the CBS RB, Minsk - a tree 8 m high, blooms, bears fruit, gives germinating seeds. 1 tree 3m high is in Brest at the agricultural station Br. State. University. A.S. Pushkin. Doesn't bloom. Not common, deserving greater distribution throughout Ukraine, southwestern and central Belarus.
The absolute weight of seeds collected in nature (Kunashir island) is 124 g - purified from sarcotest and 264 g - in sarcotest. Under the conditions of introduction in Kyiv, the absolute weight of seeds is higher and amounts to 196 g - purified from sarcotesta. Dramatically different and their soil germination. Ground germination of seeds of the Kiev reproduction is 60 - 80%, and collected on about. Kunashir - no more than 8 - 12% (Petukhova 1991). It grows quickly, tolerates shading, demanding on air and soil moisture, frost-resistant. It blooms late for the first time - 15 years after sowing. With regular watering (this species is extremely moisture-loving) in protected areas it may well be cultivated at the latitude of Moscow and even to the north.
The poor specimens of M. obovate available in Moscow cannot serve as evidence of its futility. Most likely, the landing site was chosen incorrectly and care was not provided. When protected for the winter, it withstands the climate of St. Petersburg. In culture since 1865. In GBS since 1965, 1 sample (1 copy) was grown from seedlings obtained from Far East. Height up to 0.8 m, trunk diameter 1 cm plant grows from late April to mid-October. The growth rate is average. Doesn't bloom. Winter hardiness is below average.
Magnolia obovate very decorative with a slender crown, especially in spring period during the deployment of leaves, when its pinkish stipules look like flowers. In autumn, in October, brightly colored fruits are beautiful over an umbrella of large yellowing leaves. The unusually large leaves give the tree an exotic look. Its large buds and spectacular very fragrant flowers up to 20 cm in diameter are beautiful. An extremely spectacular tree, decorative at any time of the year. Huge leaves give it a completely "tropical" look. It has no analogues in our latitudes. One hybrid known M. obovate And – M. ×watson .
In Japan it is used as medicinal plant. For the manufacture of medicines the bark is used, there are a lot of alkaloids in all organs: in the bark and annual shoots - 0.8%, in the leaves - 1.2%, in the roots - 3%. Because if the bark is damaged, the magnolia dies, then the collection of the bark occurs in forestry during wood harvesting.
| Magnolia obovate (Magnolia obovata) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Height in nature (culture), m | 30 (15) | |
| Crown volume (mm) / height (m) | 7 x 8 / 8 | |
| Trunk diameter (cm) / age (years) | 30-35 / 35 | |
| Frost resistance, ° С | - 30 | |
| Flowering phases | Beginning of flowering | 19.05 / 30.05 ± 12 |
| Duration | 25 | |
| Bloom intensity | biological | 2-3 |
| decorative | 1 | |
| Vegetation phases | Start | 17.04 ± 15 |
| Duration | 192 ± 16 | |
| leaf dissolution | 29.04 ± 15 | |
| Growth Completion | ||
| Fall phases | autumn coloring | okr. yellow-brown |
| Beginning of leaf color | 01.10 ± 12 | |
| leaf fall | 18.10 ± 7 - 25.10 ± 6 | |
| Fruiting | Maturation | 2d. 09 |
| Abundance | 2-3 | |