Flora of North America species comparison

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Magnoliaceae

composite family
Habit Trees or shrubs, deciduous or evergreen, aromatic.
Leaves

blade pinnately veined, unlobed (or evenly 2-10-lobed in Liriodendron), margins entire.
Inflorescences

terminal, solitary flowers (often paired in Magnolia ashei), pedunculate; spathaceous bracts 2 (Magnolia) or 1 (Liriodendron).
Flowers

perianth hypogynous, segments imbricate;

tepals deciduous, 6-18, in 3 or more whorls of 3, ± similar or outer tepals sepaloid, inner tepals petaloid;

stamens numerous, hypogynous, free, spirally arranged;

filaments very short to 1/2 length of anthers;

anthers introrse, latrorse, or extrorse, longitudinally dehiscent;

connective with distal appendage;

pistils numerous, superior, spirally arranged on elongate receptacle (torus), stalked or sessile, free or ±concrescent, 1-locular;

placentation marginal, placenta 1;

ovules 1-2;

style 1, short and recurved (Magnolia) or large and winglike (Liriodendron);

stigma 1, terminal or terminal decurrent (Magnolia) or recurved (Liriodendron).
Fruits

conelike syncarps consisting of aggregates of coalescent, woody follicles (follicetums, as in Magnolia) or apocarps consisting of aggregates of indehiscent samaras (samaracetums, as in Liriodendron).
Seeds

1-2 per pistil, arillate, endosperm oily (Magnolia), or without aril, adherent to dry endocarp (Liriodendron).
Pith

homogeneous or diaphragmed.

Magnoliaceae
Distribution
Mostly in Asia; the Pacific Islands; and the Western Hemisphere
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Genera ca. 6(-12), species ca. 220 (2 genera, 9 species in the flora).

Magnoliaceae are pollinated by beetles.

Herbarium material of Magnolia is usually incomplete and inadequate for critical study. Collections should include material of the stipules, spathaceous bracts, a full complement of stamens, and all of the perianth segments to facilitate identification of Magnolia species.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)
Key
1. Leaf blade entire, base deeply cordate or auriculate, or cuneate to abruptly narrowed or rounded, apex obtuse or acute to acuminate; stipules adnate on petiole or rarely free, early deciduous; tepals petaloid, usually spreading, creamy white, rarely greenish or yellow to orange-yellow, outermost tepals sepaloid, sometimes reflexed, greenish; anthers introrse or latrorse; follicles persistent, coalescent; seeds with brightly colored aril, extruded from follicles and suspended by funiculi.
Magnolia
1. Leaf blade evenly 2-10-lobed, base rounded to shallowly cordate or truncate, apex broadly truncate or notched; stipules free, erect, leafy, tardily deciduous; tepals petaloid, tip recurved, greenish yellow with feathered orange band near base, outermost tepals sepaloid, reflexed, green; anthers extrorse; samaras caducous, forming elongate spindle-shaped dry cone, indehiscent; seeds without aril, adherent to dry endocarp.
Liriodendron
Source FNA vol. 3, p. 3. Author: Frederick G. Meyer.
Parent taxa
Subordinate taxa
Liriodendron, Magnolia
Name authority Jussieu
Web links 
Unless otherwise noted, all data comes from the online version of the Flora of North America, who have made most of their content available via a Creative Commons license (CC BY 4.0).



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