Don't forget the Magnolias

Marcia sent this picture of the Friendship Tree in the Chinese Garden at the Hamilton Gardens

Life got in the way of giving timely closure to my Magnolia of the Year competition. It's been a challenging couple of months for me during this magnolia season, but their fresh beauty everywhere around Hamilton has been a frequent beacon of light and hope everytime I see them.

Bussaco Woodland at Hamilton Gardens. The white one in the foreground is M.stellata, the pink one is a cambellii or similar, and there's an evergreen m. delavayi from Geoff

Three local magnolia fans sent me photos, all but one depicting trees in the Hamilton Gardens. I can't decide on a single winner this year. So all three entrants will receive a set of five blind embossed fossils.

Blind embossed fossils

I recommend checking out their blogs: Geoff writes about the Hamilton Gardens where he works. Marcia, a beekeeper, shares her passions for plants, bees and all sorts of interesting things she does.

A stella magnolia from Marcia

Joan, one of my most talented book making students, doesn't have a blog but perhaps should. She wrote of her magnolia photo, "It is a Star or Stella magnolia and I love the tattiness of the petals. The flowers remind me of Tibetan prayer flags in the mountains. The petals blow in the breeze and scatter on the lawn and as always I am in awe at the bounty and ease within and all around me."

Joan's favourite magnolia is in her neighbour's garden