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April 11, 2005
Magnolias 4/11
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Magnolias improve with age and judicious pruning, and their elegant habit seems to work particularly well in the city. Right now, New York's magnolias are in full bloom, and can be seen up and down the Broadway malls and throughout Central Park. Three of the most magnificent specimens are located on Fifth Avenue at 71st Street in front of the Frick Collection. As is so often the case in this city, what makes the site special is the combination of trees and architecture. The two Magnolia x soulangiana and one Magnolia stellata are old and beautifully sculpted, and they complement the limestone facade of the Frick, which was designed in the Beaux Arts style by the firm of Carrere and Hastings and built in 1913. (Carrere and Hastings also designed the New York Public Library). Another name closely associated with the city, Frederick Law Olmsted Jr., who designed Fort Tryon Park, consulted on the creation of the front garden in the mid 1930s when the mansion was converted to a museum.
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At the Brooklyn Botanic Garden, Magnolia Plaza is at its peak, with seventeen different, sweetly scented varieties in various stages of bloom. The Plaza, which was installed in 1932, is located in front of the Beaux Art Administration building, which was designed by McKim Mead and White. You have to assume that the prevailing aesthetic at the time was to pair the elegant magnolia with the classically regular Beaux Arts buildings, but the combination is definitely too pleasing to be called a cliche. Although magnolias are usually pink or white, BBG has developed a now famous yellow variety called "Elizabeth" which you can see there or buy at your local nursery.
Posted by gardenguidenyc at April 11, 2005 06:31 PM