Magnolia macrophylla

This particular specimen grows at Dan Bruce's Speedwell Bird Sanctuary, whom KHS is a proud sponsor. Bigleaf magnolia is medium-sized tree 15–20 m tall, though some individuals over 27m tall (and over 100 cm circumference) have been documented by the Eastern Native Tree Society. This species is distinguished from other magnolias by the large leaf size, 25–80 cm long and 11–30 cm broad. The tree's branches often bend under the weight of this heavy foliage. I had to take a quick photo of this with Dan this morning as the rain was coming and it would not last for long having a fairly short blooming period and such large petals that the weight of rain would damage them easily.