Magnolia man: Spotlight on Tallahassee expert and researcher Gary Knox

Those of us living in the Tallahassee area are likely familiar with the native southern magnolia or perhaps the spring flowering Japanese or saucer magnolia. These magnolias just scratch the surface of the world of magnolias

If you share a love of magnolia trees, you need to become acquainted with a local botanic garden in the area, Gardens of the Big Bend, and the person behind it: Dr. Gary Knox. Knox is a professor of environmental horticulture with the University of Florida/IFAS North Florida Research and Education Center (NFREC) in Quincy.

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Throughout his 38-year career, Knox has developed a large collection of magnolias from all over the world, which can be found in the Magnolia Garden at the NFREC-Gardens of the Big Bend.

This garden houses 156 unique specimens of magnolia including cultivars, hybrids, species, and varieties. The gardens feature the endangered Florida native Ashe magnolia (M. macrophylla var. ashei), a species only found in a few counties in the Florida panhandle.

Native magnolias, national collection

In addition, the garden is home to the five other magnolia species native to Florida: the rare pyramid magnolia (M. fraseri var. pyramidata), cucumbertree magnolia (M. acuminata), umbrella magnolia (M. tripetala), as well as sweetbay magnolia (M. virginiana), and the familiar southern magnolia (M. grandiflora).

In recognition of the size and diversity of the Magnolia Garden, Gardens of the Big Bend is now part of the national collection of magnolias and one of 16 sites designated by the Plant Collections Network/American Public Gardens Association in the United States.

To be designated a Plant Collections site, the location must conserve a significant number of species and propagate these plants to share with other universities and gardens to ensure the species survival.

Sometimes called the “Johnny Appleseed of magnolias,” Knox has distributed numerous rare and/or endangered magnolia species to botanic gardens and universities around the United States, increasing the number of these plants conserved in plant collections.

Propagating seeds and rare species

One such example began when Knox was visiting China as an educational scholar. He was able to persuade his colleagues to help him collect seeds from the rare Chinese magnolia species, M. sphaerantha, and arrange for the seeds to be legally imported into the United States.

From there, Knox planted the seeds and soon thereafter distributed young plants to over 30 gardens and universities, including Gardens of the Big Bend. It was the first time this species was in a garden outside of China. Similarly, Knox shared Florida’s endangered Ashe magnolia with 23 botanical gardens across the country.

Knox said that if you like magnolias there are several magnolias that grow well in the Big Bend region, in addition to our native species mentioned above. Japanese or saucer magnolias are widely grown for their colorful displays of fragrant blooms in late winter/early spring.

Another magnolia that you will find in old-timey gardens is the banana-shrub magnolia, long treasured for its sweet, banana-scented flowers. Banana-shrub magnolias grow as small trees/large shrubs. New hybrids have been released with pink and purple flowers.

Collaboration and awards

When not collecting magnolias or other plants, Dr. Knox provides extension assistance to nursery growers and green industry professionals and collaborates with fellow researchers, plantsmen, and county agents to conduct research on emerging pests and diseases, pollinators, and plant variety evaluations to assess what grows best in the North Florida area.

In recognition for his career and achievements, Dr. Knox received several awards including the Sidney B. Meadows Award and Fellows Award, both from the International Plant Propagators’ Society, an international association of plant production professionals, and the Outstanding Extension Educator Award from the American Society for Horticultural Science, the national association of horticultural scientists.

Besides magnolias, Dr. Knox also collects crape myrtles, hydrangeas, bulbs, succulents, conifers, and palms, to name a few (his motto is “so many species, so little time”).

Many of these plants are found within the 25 acres of Gardens of the Big Bend at the University of Florida/IFAS NFREC. If you go, also ask about their collection of crape myrtles. The collection has over 100 crape myrtle plants in every color, shape, and size including new cultivars with the dark purple to black leaves.

Gardens of the Big Bend is jointly operated by the nonprofit gardening group, Gardening Friends of the Big Bend. GFBB volunteer members also support the research activities at the NFREC, sponsor educational programs for the community, and conduct fundraising activities that benefit the Gardens such as plant sales.

Community resource and plant sales

I am a big fan of GFBB’s plant sales which they hold twice a year. These sales offer plants propagated by volunteers that perform well in our area. You can frequently find rare plants not easily found elsewhere, many of which are planted in Gardens of the Big Bend.

Membership is open to anyone living in the Big Bend area. As is true with any volunteer organization, you can get involved with as many or as few activities that capture your interest.

Knox holds GFBB volunteers in high regard for their friendship, as well as the critical assistance they provide to his program. In turn, GFBB volunteers learn about the horticultural research activities and develop a greater appreciation for plants and gardens.

Knox hopes that by working together to create a place of beauty that teaches and inspires others, the volunteers can gain a sense of satisfaction and fulfillment.

Less than a 30-minute drive from Tallahassee, the UF/IFAS NFREC is a fascinating place and is a must-see if you have not visited it. Home to 20 University of Florida Ph.D. faculty members and numerous staff who conduct interdisciplinary agricultural and natural resources research in North Florida, the NFREC campus encompasses approximately 1,000 acres of cropland and forest.

I would encourage anyone who is interested to visit Gardens of the Big Bend during a GFBB plant sale or NFREC field day or festival when tours and displays are offered. Gardens of the Big Bend is open between dusk and dawn 365 days a year.

The gardens and NFREC are located on Highway 267, Pat Thomas Parkway, just north of Interstate 10 on the way to Quincy. You can learn more information about NFREC events, the Gardens, and the Gardening Friends of the Big Bend at    www.thegfbb.com.

Brenda Buchan is a Master Gardener Volunteer with UF/IFAS Extension Leon County, an Equal Opportunity Institution. For gardening questions, email the extension office at AskAMasterGardener@ifas.ufl.edu.

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Expert Gary Knox develops a magnolia collection at Quincy garden