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Bigleaf Magnolia

Magnolia macrophylla

Found in moist forests. Weakley, Flora of the Southeastern United States (2025), Northern Tier edition What its natural habitat tells you

71
Strong

Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 100%

Height
30–40 feet
Spread
30–40 feet
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist

Space about 30 ft apart from its recorded spread. Enter your bed size for a count

Will it fit your yard?

Rare or protected plant. Specialist conservation planting; excluded from routine garden suggestions. Plant caution source

Hidden from default planting suggestions. Wildlife value and native status remain unchanged.

At a glance

Life cycle
Woody perennial
Leaves
Deciduous
Bloom
May to June
Fruiting season
July to August

Recorded in 5 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

Moist forests

Shortia beneath rhododendrons in mountain woodland
Regional / representative. Shown: Mountains of North and South Carolina; exact site not identified, a neighboring state.Shortia beneath rhododendrons in mountain woodland, Marian Ellis Rowan, 1901. Public domain. Source record.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 113 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

24CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Magnolia

  • Callosamia prometheaPromethea Moth
  • Papilio glaucusEastern Tiger Swallowtail
  • Automeris ioIo Moth
  • Callosamia anguliferaTulip-Tree Silkmoth
  • Callosamia securiferaSweetbay Silkmoth, Carolina Silk Moth
  • Cameraria hamadryadellaSolitary Oak Leafminer Moth
  • Epimecis hortariaTulip-Tree Beauty
  • Episimus tyriusMaple Tip Borer
  • Euzophera ostricolorellaTulip-Tree Borer, Root Collar borer
  • Hypercompe scriboniaGiant Leopard Moth, Great Leopard Moth
Show all 24
  • Hyphantria cuneaFall Webworm
  • Laetilia coccidivoraScale-Feeding Snout
  • Melanolophia canadariaCanadian Melanolphia, Variable Redmarked Looper
  • Morrisonia latexFluid Arches, Fluid Mamestra
  • Orgyia leucostigmaWhite-Marked Tussock Moth
  • Papilio palamedesPalamedes Swallowtail
  • Papilio polyxenesBlack Swallowtail, Celery Caterpillar, Fennel Worm, Desert Black Swallowtail, Parsnip Swallowtail
  • Papilio troilusSpicebush Swallowtail
  • Paralobesia cyclopianaSweetbay Seedpod Moth
  • Paralobesia liriodendranaTulip-Tree Leaftier
  • Phyllocnistis liriodendronellaMagnolia Serpentine Leafminer
  • Prolimacodes badiaSkiff Moth, Skiff Caterpillar
  • Archips magnoliana
  • Paralobesia magnoliana
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
7BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Magnolia

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
0Specialist beesPollen specialists
2BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Magnolia

  • Campephilus principalisIvory-billed Woodpecker
  • Vireo olivaceusRed-eyed Vireo
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Magnoliaceae
Hardiness
Zones 5a–8b
Soil pH
Acidic to neutral
Flower color
Cream, purple or white
Fruit begins
July
Fruit ends
August
Growing sources and scope

Conservation status

Virginia rankS1
Global rankG4
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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Sources