Cal State Magnolia

This is a shot of a Magnolia bloom on one of the nineteen beautifully matched trees lined up on either side of the sidewalks bordering the grassy area in front of the majestic circular Music Building on the Cal State East Bay campus.

Magnolia is a large genus of about 210 flowering plant species in the subfamily Magnolioideae of the family Magnoliaceae. It is named after French botanist Pierre Magnol.

Magnolia is an ancient genus. Appearing before bees did, the flowers are theorized to have evolved to encourage pollination by beetles. To avoid damage from pollinating beetles, the carpels of Magnolia flowers are extremely tough. Fossilized specimens of M. acuminata have been found dating to 20 million years ago, and of plants identifiably belonging to the Magnoliaceae date to 95 million years ago.

Widely grown in warmer areas around the world, over 50 cultivars have been bred and marketed commercially.