Few trees invoke the feeling of the old Southern homestead like our native Southern magnolia, and Little Gem is no exception. Southern magnolias are wonderful for pollinators because of their fragrant white flowers that begin blooming in late spring and continue until fall. The Southern magnolia flower is also the state flower of Louisiana. These trees thrive in Louisiana’s climate and native soils and provide year-round landscape aesthetics. For these reasons and many more, Southern magnolia Little Gem was selected as a 2018 Louisiana Super Plant. One of the more compact commercial cultivars, Little Gem will grow between 30 and 35 feet tall and 12 and 15 feet wide. Little Gem can be grown as a dense hedge or a feature foundation tree like other Southern magnolias. Little Gem has smaller leaves than many of the other Southern magnolias, but still provides the dark green, glossy foliage with rusty-brown undersides that are attractive year-round.