What does the White Magnolia symbolize?
Do you know about this? The symbolism of white magnolia and the meaning and flower language of green plant maintenance, the following is introduced by the editor of this site for everyone.
Every year from February to March, when the white magnolia's pure white flowers begin to bloom slightly, it also means that this city has stepped into the early spring of revival. In various media, there is always a photo: the main character is the initial white magnolia, and the background is the skyscrapers of Lujiazui.
The white magnolia has been the city flower of Shanghai for 33 years, witnessing the urban changes since the reform and opening up.
White flowers as jade, fragrant like orchids
White magnolia blooms from February to April, before the leaves open, with a flowering period of 8 to 10 days, fruit matures from September to October, and is a famous early spring flowering tree in China. Because it blooms without leaves, it is known as the "wood flower tree." When magnolia is in full bloom, the flowers are large and white, winning praise such as "clean and beautiful, like ice and snow," and "white flowers as jade, fragrant like orchids."
Historically, there have been many poems about magnolia. In his "Ode to Magnolia," Wen Zhengming wrote:
Graceful in new makeup, jade shining bright, a thousand fairies dance in snow.
I know the real fairy of Guyue Mountain, sent by heaven to try the feathered dress.
Shadows fall on the empty steps, the cold moon at first, the fragrance fills the courtyard in the evening breeze.
Jade ring and swallows are no match, laughing at the plum blossom not envying its plumpness.
Meaning:
The newly opened magnolia is elegant and white, like a graceful beauty with a snow-white face just adorned, glowing like jade.
From a distance, the full tree of flowers looks like countless fairies in white dresses, gathering to dance gracefully like snowflakes, a feast for the eyes. I think magnolia must be a fairy from Guyue Mountain (a mythical place where beautiful goddesses reside), and only heaven would grant her such a fairy-like dress.
At night, the swaying shadows of the flowers reflect on the empty steps, making one reluctant to tread. Looking up, the pure white flowers bathe in the faint moonlight, sacred and peaceful. The evening breeze gently blows, filling the air with fragrance, even through layers of courtyards, the delicate scent cannot be blocked.
Another poet, Shen Zhou, in his " Inscription on Magnolia," wrote:
Green branches strong, guiding the wind, breaking the silver flowers, jade snow fragrance.
Rhythmical friends know human intentions are good, gently unbuttoning the white gauze from behind the curtain.
Thus, it can be seen that white magnolia has been a symbol of purity in ancient times.
There is a Chinese saying called "Jade and Gold Fill the Hall." What does "Jade and Gold Fill the Hall" mean? From the perspective of landscape architecture, it means planting a white magnolia and a silver flower (silver flower) in the courtyard, symbolizing "Jade and Gold Fill the Hall."
Elected as the City Flower of Shanghai in 1986 with a High Vote
How did the white magnolia, which has always been popular among Chinese people, become the city flower of Shanghai?
After 1978, the call for electing a city flower among the citizens gradually increased. After some contemplation, in April 1983, relevant departments proposed to include Chinese roses, peaches, begonias, pomegranates, azaleas, and white magnolias as candidate city flowers. The same year, 11 parks, including People's Park, Zhongshan Park, Fuxing Park, and Yangpu Park, were set up for citizens to vote. Out of the more than 100,000 votes received, white magnolia had the most votes, followed by peach. After expert review, white magnolia was initially determined as the city flower. According to the "Report on Recommending the City Flower of Our City" by the City Garden Management Bureau, the Municipal People's Government submitted it to the Shanghai Municipal People's Congress Standing Committee for review on September 9, 1986. On October 25, 1986, the 24th Meeting of the Standing Committee of the Eighth Shanghai Municipal People's Congress decided that the white magnolia would be the city flower of Shanghai.
The white magnolia is native to the central region of China and has a long history of cultivation in Shanghai. Under Shanghai's climate conditions, white magnolia flowers especially early, with the arrival of spring, before Qingming Festival, it can bloom in full, with large and white flowers, all facing upwards when in bloom. Choosing white magnolia as the city flower of Shanghai symbolizes a spirit of pioneering and striving upwards.
What does the White Magnolia symbolize?
The Oldest White Magnolia in Shanghai is in Chen Yun's Former Residence
Among the more than a thousand ancient and famous trees in Shanghai, there is also the white magnolia. The oldest one is located in the Chen Yun Former Residence in Liantang Town, Qingpu District. This ancient white magnolia has lived in a Jiangnan courtyard at the back street of Chen Yun's Former Residence for over a hundred years.
This ancient white magnolia tree is 8.7 meters tall, with a chest diameter of 72 centimeters and a crown span of 6 meters, classified as a level-one protected ancient and famous tree.
Every early spring, gently pushing open the door of the old house, the fragrance of magnolia flowers drifts over, with long corridors, open-air courts, halls, pavilions, trees, and a serene and quiet courtyard. The white magnolia roots are on the right side of the front hall but leans at a 45-degree angle to the left side of the front hall, with more than 3,000 magnolia flowers competing to bloom, resembling a cluster of jade butterflies, and from a distance, a cloud of white. It is a witness of history, a living cultural relic, witnessing Chen Yun's childhood and the growth of the Chen Yun Memorial Hall, becoming a major landscape in Chen Yun's hometown.
Besides this century-old magnolia, almost every park and green space in Shanghai has planted white magnolias, with relatively concentrated viewing spots including Shanghai Botanical Garden, Gu village Park, Youth Forest Park, Fangta Garden,醉白池 Park, Century Park,闵行 Cultural Park,玉兰 Park, People's Square, Shanghai Zoo, and other places.
In recent years, the Shanghai Garden Science Planning and Research Institute has carried out the breeding of new magnolia varieties with the goal of enriching the color and shape of magnolia flowers. This March, five new varieties bred by the city's garden academy, including two white magnolia series, two Wangchun magnolia series, and one Erjiao magnolia series, passed the expert substantial review organized by the National Forestry and Grassland Administration's Office of New Tree Variety Protection, indicating that Shanghai now has its own intellectual property rights for new magnolia varieties. Next, the city's garden academy will increase the propagation efforts of new variety seedlings and simultaneously develop standardized cultivation techniques for new variety magnolias, striving to promote new varieties to Shanghai's streets and alleys, presenting a different scene of the city flower.
The above shares the full content of what the white magnolia symbolizes and the meaning and flower language of white magnolia flowers, for your comprehensive understanding and reference!