11 Different Types of Pink Flowering Magnolia Tree Varieties (2024)

Magnolia trees are prized on several continents for their elegant, sweetly fragranced blooms, and handsome foliage. With hundreds of varieties to choose from, finding a magnolia tree that suits your space can be a delightful journey. Those large, shiny, green leaves and broad white flowers truly make a statement that is singular and stunning in simplicity.

Did you know that magnolias also come in a variety of other colors and can take on different forms, from a medium sized shrub to a 50’ tree or even taller? Some of my very favorite trees with blooming flowers are pink magnolias. The first tree I planted in the yard of my forever home was a pink magnolia and it brings me such joy when it blooms in the spring.

Pink magnolias tend to be early spring bloomers, although some hybrids have been created to bloom later, to make them more tolerant of late freezes. Most bloom on bare wood, and are quite fragrant, producing a bounty of pink confection once they reach maturity. Here are 11 beautiful varieties of pink magnolias you’ll love!

‘Alexandrina’

Scientific Name: Magnolia x soulangeana ‘Alexandrina’

• Bloom Time: Spring
• Plant Size: 20’-25’ tall and wide
• Plant Zone: 5-9
• Light: Full Sun

Alexandrina is a saucer magnolia variety with large (6”-10” wide), fragrant, light pink blooms. The buds appear in late winter in pale purple, but open to a much softer shade of blush pink fading to white at the edges. The fragrance and presence of plentiful pollen make these a wonderful feast for pollinators.

The growth habit of this variety lends very well to a large shrub or privacy hedge, it has a rounded and symmetrical habit. Trimming the bottom branches will create a lovely, small to mid sized tree. Alexandrina needs some protection from frost, so placing it beside a house or outbuilding is a good choice. This brings the added benefit of being able to see and smell it as regularly as possible. Alexandrina grows best with full sun and even moisture.

‘Ballerina’

Scientific Name: Magnolia x loebneri ‘Ballerina’

• Bloom Time: Spring
• Plant Size: 20’ tall and 15;’ wide
• Plant Zone: 5-9
• Light: Full to Part Sun

This graceful variety offers an early return on time invested in its care. Although it has only a moderate growth rate, Ballerina flowers early and profusely. The blooms are stunning, mostly white with a blush pink center and a soft yellow eye. The flowers are medium in size (4’-6’) and made up of 30 or more petals in a starlike shape, as well as being wonderfully fragrant. The flowers make great cut flowers as well.

Ballerina has a medium growth rate and a life span up to 80 years. It is not a large tree, but it has a wonderful dome shaped habit and makes a wonderful spring focal point in the landscape. This species prefers moist, well-drained soil. Ballerina is intolerant of urban pollution, so it doesn’t do well in cities. This dancer is a country girl at heart.

‘Betty’

Scientific Name: Magnolia x ‘Betty’

• Bloom Time: Mid Spring and into Summer
• Plant Size: 10’-15’ tall and 15’-20’ wide
• Plant Zone: 4-8
• Light: Full Sun

Betty is a member of the U.S. National Arboretum’s “Little Girl” group of hybrids. It has an upright and rounded growth habit, topping out around 15’ tall. It is wonderful as a focal point or grouped together as a border. This slow growing magnolia can also be grown in containers because of its slow growth habit.

Betty’s flowers are large (8”) in diameter, and fragrant. This variety blooms in mid spring and sporadically through the summer, helping it to avoid late frost damage. Betty is very hardy. Her reddish-purple buds open to pink, tulip shaped flowers, at the end of nearly every stem tip. This variety is easy to grow and will tolerate some shade, but blooms best in full sun.

‘Black Tulip’

Scientific Name: Magnolia x soulangeana ‘Jurmag1’

• Bloom Time: Early Spring
• Plant Size: 15’-20’ tall
• Plant Zone: 5-9
• Light: Full Sun

The flowers on Black Tulip are more burgundy than a true pink, but they are so strikingly beautiful that they deserve mention on any list of magnolia trees. Dramatic, 6” tulip shaped flowers are a deep magenta. The large, heavy blossoms appear in Spring, but may make a second emergence in mid-summer in some cooler climates.

This small and striking tree does well in urban yards. It is adaptable to many soil types but needs proper drainage to thrive. It has a moderate growth habit, and the stunning blooms are quite long lasting and sturdy. You will want to bring these flowers inside, or at least see them through your most prominent window.

‘Caerhays Belle’

Scientific Name: Magnolia ‘Caerhays Belle’

• Bloom Time: Spring
• Plant Size: 20’-40’ tall and 15’-25’ wide
• Plant Zone: 6-9
• Light: Full Sun to Dappled Sun

One of the most magnificent flowering trees I have laid eyes on, this variety was developed at Caerhays Castle in England in 1951, where it first flowered in 1965. Caerhays takes 20 years to mature when planted from seed, so it is generally propagated by grafting.

This stunning specimen produces a profusion of extra-large (12”), bright pink, goblet shaped blooms in mid to late spring. It is an early bloomer that can be negatively affected by a late frost. Caerhays can grow up to 50’ tall and is quite a striking and breathtaking tree. In 2012 it received the Royal Horticultural Society’s Award of Garden Merit. This variety is a magnolia fit for a queen. If you have space for a very large tree, I highly recommend obtaining a Caerhays Belle magnolia.

‘Daybreak’

Scientific Name: Magnolia‘Daybreak’

• Bloom Time: Late Spring
• Plant Size: 20’-40’’ tall and 6’-15’ wide
• Plant Zone: 5-8
• Light: Full Sun to Part Shade

Daybreak features a columnar growth habit that is unusual for a magnolia tree. Most magnolias have a spread that rivals their height. Daybreak grows significantly taller than it does wide. It is a late blooming variety, so its flowers generally escape frost damage. The large pastel pink flowers blooming from this tree have deep pink carpels and pink brushed, pale-yellow stamens at the center of petals with a white interior.

This fragrant magnolia is another winner of the Award of Garden Merit from the Royal Horticultural Society, as well as being a Gold Medal winner from the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. It is pollution tolerant, can survive well in urban landscapes and is very adaptable to different types of soil.

‘Gracilis’

Scientific Name: Magnolia liliiflora ‘Gracilis’

• Bloom Time: Late Spring
• Plant Size: 12’ tall and 12’-15’ wide
• Plant Zone: 5-9
• Light: Full Sun to Part Shade

Known for its appearances in Asian temple gardens, Gracilis was introduced from Japan in 1804. This variety has a low, and commonly wider spreading habit. The spread is generally wider than it is tall, lending a great deal of interest to its appearance.

Gracilis’ purple buds open to 3”-4” pink, lily shaped flowers. This variety is small and hardy with a shrubby habit. Its branches and flowers both have a slender and graceful appearance. The flowers are delicate in appearance and have little noteworthy fragrance.

‘Jane Platt’

Scientific Name: Magnolia stellata ‘Jane Platt’

• Bloom Time: Spring
• Plant Size: 10’-15’ tall and 8’-12’ wide
• Plant Zone:
• Light: Full Sun to Part Shade

‘Jane Platt‘ is not a very large variety and is more of a shrub than a tree. That doesn’t stop it from being highly sought after for its incredible flowers. Jane’s double blossoms are star shaped and bountiful. The smaller flowers (4’) are a soft pink color and fragrant, each boasting up to 32 petals.

A profusion of these lovely blooms appear in early spring on bare branches, which create a blank canvas perfect for these bursts of rosy confection. This Oregon species is a wonderful focal point in the spring garden.

‘Leonard Messel’

Scientific Name: Magnolia x loebneri ‘Leonard Messel’

• Bloom Time: Spring
• Plant Size: 15’-30’ tall and 20’-25’ wide
• Plant Zone: 5-9
• Light: Full Sun

This variety blooms at an early age with glorious bi-color flowers. The rosy, purple outside of the petals compliment the creamy white inside with a soft blush. This combination of colors gives an elegant pink appearance to the entire tree as blossoms appear on bare branches.

This is a compact variety that makes a lovely small tree. It can also be kept low and trained into a shrub shape. Whatever the shape you choose to train this beauty to, it is a spectacular plant when it sends out its plentiful, star-like blooms.

‘Lilliputian’

Scientific Name: Magnolia x soulangeana ‘Lilliputian’

• Bloom Time: Spring
• Plant Size: 12’ tall and 8’ wide
• Plant Zone: 5-9
• Light: Full Sun to Part Shade

As its name suggests, this variety of saucer magnolia is on the petite side. But as any Gulliver’s Travels fan knows, what it lacks in stature, it makes up for in spirit. ‘Lilliputian’ is compact and lovely. Its size makes it a great container plant, as well as a good fit for more size constrained landscapes.

The stunning shape of this tree is complemented by gorgeous, tulip to saucer shaped blooms. The flowers are white inside but brushed with a sweet rosy hue from the base to the tip of the outer petals. They have a light, citrusy fragrance and make great cut flowers.

‘Pinkie’

Scientific Name: Magnolia x ‘Pinkie’

• Bloom Time: Late Spring
• Plant Size: 10’-15’ tall and 8’-12’ wide
• Plant Zone: 4-8
• Light: Full Sun

‘Pinkie‘ is another member of the National Arboretum’s Little Girl series. This sweet hybrid was created to bloom later than most saucer magnolias, so it escapes most frosts, although the flowers can be damaged by a late frost. This compact variety can be grown as a shrub or small tree. It is tolerant of most soil conditions and works well in urban settings. It makes a spectacular focal point in the spring.

The blooms are quite on the large side (7”-8”) for such a smaller variety of tree. The outer petals are reddish-purple fading to pale pink at their tips. Inside the petals are white, with the outer color showing through to create a soft pink glow. A yellow-green eye is flanked on all sides by pink stamens.