Yulan magnolia
Magnolia denudata
Yulan magnolia is a deciduous tree native to central and eastern China, cultivated in Chinese Buddhist temple gardens since at least 600 AD and the official city flower of Shanghai. In cultivation it produces pure white, lemon-fragrant goblet flowers up to 16 cm wide directly on bare branches in late winter to early spring - one of the most spectacular late-winter displays of any hardy tree. The honest catch is phenological: the flowers emerge so early that a single late frost turns the entire display brown overnight, a gamble known informally as "magnolia roulette" that repeats every few years; siting against a south-facing wall or in a thermally buffered spot is not optional, it is the only reliable mitigation (Wikipedia / RHS AGM).
Climate fit: narrow (30/100)
Focal point
Structure
Pollinator
Light
Full sun / Part sun
Water
Consistent moisture
Mature size
240-360" tall · 300" apart
Hardy in zones
6a-9b
cold to frosty winters
Native in Illinois
No
Related products
Sponsored
Shop gardening supplies for Yulan magnolia on Amazon ->
Plotwright may earn a commission from purchases made through this link, at no extra cost to you.
Magnolia denudata, like all magnolias, belongs to one of the most ancient angiosperm genera - the flowers evolved before the diversification of bees and are adapted to pollination by beetles (Coleoptera), which are attracted by the lemon-citrus fragrance and creamy pollen.
Cold hardiness
These values are location-based: this location's current hardiness is the baseline, and the 2050 value is a projected future climate for this same location.
Now
Zone 6b
Plotwright
USDA Zone 6b
-5°F to 0°F
Well-suited
Zone 7a
Plotwright
0°F to 5°F
Well-suited
In plain terms: This location has cold winters. Its winters are projected to keep warming through 2050.
✓
Well-suited today and still thriving in 2050.
Heat tolerance
Heat tolerance values are location-based too: heat days today are observed at this site, and the 2050 value projects this same location under a future climate.
Loading AHS heat-zone data for this location...
Where this plant fits
Suitable across 41 ecoregions — 38 climate-resilient through 2070 · 1 suited today · 2 newly possible by 2070. Best matches first.
Appalachian mixed mesophytic forests
›
Appalachian-Blue Ridge forests
›
Arizona Mountains forests
›
Atlantic coastal pine barrens
›
Blue Mountains forests
›
Canadian Aspen forests and parklands
›
Central Pacific Northwest coastal forests
›
Central Tallgrass prairie
›
Central-Southern Cascades Forests
›
Chilean Matorral
›
Similar plants
Browse lateral options with similar roles, light needs, size, or native-range overlap; these are not filtered for a better climate fit.
Tilia americana
American basswood
A medium-to-large native shade tree of central and eastern North America, reaching 50-80 feet with an ovate-rounded crown and large, asymmetric heart-shaped leaves. In June it carries pale-yellow, intensely fragrant flowers on pendulous cymes — each cluster hung from a distinctive strap-like leafy bract — that ripen into pea-sized nutlets. The fragrant June bloom is a premier nectar source: Missouri Botanical Garden lists it as attracting bees and butterflies, and the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center flags it as having special value to both native and honey bees.
Ilex opaca
American holly
The only native U.S. holly with both spiny green leaves and bright red berries — an upright, pyramidal, broadleaf evergreen tree that slowly matures to 15-30 feet in cultivation (to 50 feet in the wild). Thick, leathery, deep green leaves bear spiny marginal teeth, and pollinated female trees carry showy red-to-orange drupes that ripen in fall and persist through winter as bird food. This is the classic "Christmas holly" of wreaths and decorations.
Diospyros virginiana
American persimmon
A tough, medium-sized native tree of the eastern and midwestern United States, grown as much for its showy edible orange fruit as for its distinctive thick, dark gray bark broken into rectangular blocks. Small urn-shaped white-to-greenish-yellow flowers open in May and June, and the sweet fruit ripens after frost. Largely dioecious — a female tree needs a male pollinizer nearby to set fruit — and notably drought- and walnut-tolerant once established.
Prunus serotina
Black cherry
The largest native cherry of eastern North America — a medium-to-large deciduous shade tree that hangs elongated racemes of small white flowers in spring, then ripens drooping strings of pea-sized fruit from red to near-black in late summer. The fragrant white bloom feeds bees while the fruit is eaten by 33 species of birds and many mammals; it is also a workhorse larval host, supporting the Eastern Tiger Swallowtail and a string of giant silk and sphinx moths. Every part except the ripe fruit is cyanide-bearing and toxic.
Crataegus monogyna
Common hawthorn
Common hawthorn is a deciduous, thorny small tree or large shrub native to Europe, northwestern Africa, and western Asia, where it has been used for centuries as stock-proof hedging and valued for its May blossom and autumn haws. In the garden it earns its keep as a tough wildlife powerhouse — a single mature tree can support hundreds of invertebrate species, and the haw crop sustains thrushes and waxwings through winter (Wikipedia). The honest catch is the thorns: they are genuinely sharp (up to 12.5 mm), making pruning painful and placing it off-limits near paths and play areas; the tree is also considered invasive in parts of the Pacific Northwest, Australia, and New Zealand where it outcompetes native scrub.
Diospyros lotus
Date plum
Date plum (Diospyros lotus) is a deciduous tree native from northeastern and south-central Turkey east through Iran, the Himalayas, and Central Asia to China and Korea, with a history of cultivation reaching back to antiquity — possibly the "lotus" of Homer's Odyssey. In gardens it offers glossy foliage, small greenish-cream flowers in summer, and ornamental fruit ripening to yellow then blue-black. The honest catch is twofold: the tree is dioecious, so a male is needed near a female for a proper seeded crop (a lone female sets only sparse, often seedless fruit), and the fruit is intensely astringent until fully ripe or frost-softened, so it is messy and unpalatable if picked early.
Educator packet
Plant packet
Yulan magnolia educator packet
Yulan magnolia is a deciduous tree native to central and eastern China, cultivated in Chinese Buddhist temple gardens since at least 600 AD and the official city flower of Shanghai. In cultivation it produces pure white, lemon-fragrant goblet flowers up to 16 cm wide directly on bare branches in late winter to early spring - one of the most spectacular late-winter displays of any hardy tree. The honest catch is phenological: the flowers emerge so early that a single late frost turns the entire display brown overnight, a gamble known informally as "magnolia roulette" that repeats every few years; siting against a south-facing wall or in a thermally buffered spot is not optional, it is the only reliable mitigation (Wikipedia / RHS AGM).
Scientific name
Magnolia denudata
Plant type
tree
Hardiness
6a-9b
Light
full-sun, part-sun
Moisture
consistent
Spacing
300 inches
Classroom prompts
- Which plant traits are observations, and which are care recommendations?
- How would this plant fit change if the garden location moved warmer, colder, wetter, or drier?
- Which source-backed facts would you cite in a lesson handout?
Use the Sources & citations section below for page citation styles and the field-level source list.
Sources & citations
Cite this page
For lesson plans, articles, or research that uses this page. To cite a single upstream fact instead, use its specific source listed below.
Plotwright. (2026, May 17). Yulan magnolia (Magnolia denudata). Retrieved 2026, June 30, from https://plotwright.com/plants/magnolia-denudata
Sources for every fact
Every fact on this page traces to a source. 18 fields cited - 18 source-backed.
RHS Find a Plant
Botanical research database
Backs 17 fields
Identity
Summary
Plant type
Light
Moisture
Hardiness
Heat zone
Size
Spacing
Habit
Design roles
Seasonal interest
Growth stages
Lifecycle
Regional guidance
Success tips
Designer notes