After the end of World War II several new universities were established in Slovakia, including the University of Agricultural and Forest Engineering in Košice. Subsequently, in 1950 the largest botanical garden in Slovakia was founded, with an area of more than 30 hectares. Although the university later moved to another city, the botanical garden continued to operate in Košice and in 1964 it was taken over by the Pavol Jozef Šafárik University (UPJŠ). Today the 70-year-old botanical garden is a scientific and teaching centre for UPJŠ that educates students from the Faculty of Science as well as pupils from primary and secondary schools. The garden also fulfils its scientific mission in the study of botany and nature conservation and is a cultural and social institution in eastern Slovakia.
For a long time the entrance to the building of the botanical garden has been dominated by a monumental tree, the southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora). It is an evergreen tree native to the south-eastern United States. It is included in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. When it blooms, its impressive creamy white flowers glitter in contrast with its background of big dark green leaves. The tallest exemplars of the tree in its homeland are taller than 35 metres, no wonder these majestic trees have become the state flower of two US states: Louisiana and Mississippi. Thanks to its beauty the southern magnolia is grown in botanical gardens all over the world. The species has more than 70 cultivars and several of them are frost tolerant allowing it to be grown in colder areas. The magnolia is a magnificent tree that certainly deserves our attention and admiration.
Pavol Mártonfi
