Last Chance to See SF’s Magnificent “Peak” Magnolia Bloom (Feb. 10-28)

Thanks to San Francisco Botanical Garden for sharing the news that the first of their beautiful magnolias are blooming.

One of San Francisco’s most breathtaking natural marvels, the annual bloom of more than 200 rare and historic magnolias with trees reaching 80 feet, is typically at its peak from mid-January through March at the SF Botanical Garden.

Velvety silver buds on the often bare branches of these elegant trees, many rare and historic, open into dazzling pink, magenta, and white flowers, filling the wintery garden with dramatic splashes of color and sweetly fragrant scents.

2024 Magnolia Update

> Are the magnolias blooming right now? Yes! Peak bloom has arrived as of February 10, 2024.

The peak bloom is expected to last for the next two weeks through February 24, 2024.

sfbotanicalgarden shared on Instagram:
“Peak Magnolia Bloom is Here ‼️🚨🌸
Happy Lunar New Year! The time has come and peak bloom is expected to last for the next two weeks through Valentine’s Day and President’s Day weekend pending weather. It is looking like next weekend could get stormy again so get out there now while the sun is shining.

Top spots not to miss:
🌸 Temperate Asia Garden with Magnolia campbellii ‘Darjeeling’, M. sprengeri, and M. doltsopa all along the main path
🌙 Moon Viewing Garden with M. campbellii ‘Strybing White’, M. denudata, and more as well as the adjacent Camellia Garden and Southeast Asian Cloud Forest Garden have more M. campbellii and doltsopa blooming
🌸 Rhododendron Garden has several M. campbellii beautifully in bloom and nearby the grove of M. sprengeri right off the Great Meadow are stunning

Learn more and get tickets at gggp.org”

• The first wave in typically mid January is the garden’s signature M. campbellii which are first to bloom in the Camellia Garden with some M. sprengeri starting around the same time in the Temperate Asia collection and near Fountain Plaza.
• Starting usually late-January into the first couple weeks of February the bloom typically crescendos into “peak bloom” with all the various M. campbellii cultivars, M. dawsoniana, M. denudata, and more putting on the best show of the season throughout the areas where there are concentrations of large, beautiful trees—Temperate Asia, Camellia Garden, Moon Viewing Garden, and Rhododendron Garden. For 2024, it looks like the Magnolias are a little behind. Last year (2023) the peak started around February 8th.
• Late February into March, the hybrid M. x. soulangeana, M. x. veitchii , as well as more subtle M. stellata, and M. laevifolia close out the annual display just as all the many other spring blooming plants at the Garden start to flower and fresh foliage begins to push.

 

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> Magnolia Tip: Always check the SF Botanical Gardens on Facebook, Instagram, and X before heading out for the latest updates on how things are blooming.

Annual Magnolia Bloom | 2024
San Francisco Botanical Garden, Golden Gate Park near 9th and Irving
Mid January – Late March (approx)

Hours
Garden opens at 7:30am
The Garden closes one hour after last entry. Last entry changes seasonally.
– 1st Sunday in November – January: 4pm
– February – 2nd Saturday in March: 5pm
– 2nd Sunday in March – September: 6pm

Admission
– FREE for SF residents with proof of ID
– FREE daily from 7:30-9 am (enter via the main gate)
– FREE all day on the second Tuesday of the month
– FREE – Museums for All – All visitors receiving food assistance (SNAP benefits) are offered free general admission. Free admission may be redeemed by presenting a valid EBT card upon entry.
– $11 for Non-residents | Discounts for Seniors, Military & Veterans, Families & Children

San Francisco Botanical Garden is home to the most significant magnolia collection for conservation purposes outside China, where the majority of species originated. Its current collection includes 51 species and 33 cultivars including many prized examples from Asia.