Thespesia grandiflora

Maga
From top, left to right: Close-up of the Maga flower in Adjuntas; and wide view of the Maga tree in Manatí
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Rosids
Order: Malvales
Family: Malvaceae
Genus: Thespesia
Species:
T. grandiflora
Binomial name
Thespesia grandiflora
Synonyms[2]
  • Montezuma speciosissima DC.

Thespesia grandiflora, most commonly known as Maga and Maga Colorada ("Red-Colored Maga"), and also erroneously referred to as Amapola (Puerto Rican term for hibiscus),[3] is a tree in the Malvaceae family of the rosids clade endemic to Puerto Rico, where its flower is officially recognized as the national flower of the archipelago and island. Originally native to the humid, lower limestone mountains of the Cordillera Central and the Northern Karst Belt in the western and north-central regions of the main island, it grows everywhere in the archipelago due to its extensive cultivation. The maga is mostly used as an ornamental plant, but like the related portia, its wood is also valued for its durable timber. It is grown as an ornamental tree in Florida, Hawaii, Honduras, and various Caribbean islands.[4][2][5][6][7][8]

Though the maga is contained within the same family as hibiscus and may sometimes be referred to as such in English and Amapola in Puerto Rican Spanish, truly it belongs to a different genus, and is more closely related to Cotton.

Flower

The flower of the Maga tree is the official national flower of Puerto Rico.[9]

The flowers are red to pink in color with year-round flowering. The flowers are five-petalled with prominent pistils. Pendents on long stems can be observed. The fruits have three or four seeds. The leaves have an alternate arrangement on stems.[10]

Tree

The Maga tree grows to reach about 50 feet in height and 20 feet across. The bark of the tree is dark-colored with noticeably furrowed texture. The hard wood of the tree is considered durable and termite resistant, as a result is often used for fence posts and furniture.[10]

References

  1. ^ "Thespesia grandiflora". Germplasm Resources Information Network. Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 31 March 2009.
  2. ^ a b Thespesia grandiflora DC. ITIS Standard Reports. Taxonomic Serial No.: 21764. Integrated Taxonomic Information System. 5 September 2013.
  3. ^ "¿Flor de maga o de amapola?". Primera Hora (in Spanish). 2019-11-12. Retrieved 2025-09-02.
  4. ^ Thespesia grandiflora (DC.) Urban. John K. Francis. USDA. Forest Service. Retrieved 5 September 2013.
  5. ^ Thespesia grandiflora DC. (maga). USDA. Natural Resources Conservation Service. Retrieved 5 September 2013.
  6. ^ La Reforestacion Gubernamental en Puerto Rico.] Frank H. Wadsworth. Instituto Internacional de Dasonomía Tropical. U.S. Forest Service. Río Piedras, Puerto Rico. {Acta Científica 22(1-3), 105-113, 2008.} Page 105. Retrieved 9 September 2013.
  7. ^ "Ley Núm. 87 del año 2019" [Act No. 87 of the year 2019]. LexJuris de Puerto Rico (in Spanish). Retrieved 18 March 2021.
  8. ^ López Maldonado, Cesiach (21 August 2019). "Entre leyes y múltiples indultos" [Between laws and multiple pardons] (in Spanish). Primera Hora. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
  9. ^ Mowbray, Alan (2009). "Endemic Plant - Maga Tree". El Yunque National Forest. USDA Forest Service. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
  10. ^ a b "Expanding Tree Diversity in Hawai'i's: Landscapes Maga, Thespesia grandiflora" (PDF). University of Hawai’i Manoa. Retrieved September 2, 2025.

Bibliography

  • Bailey, L.H. 1941. The standard cyclopedia of horticulture. New York: Macmillan. 3,639 p.
  • Calvesbert, Robert, Jr. 1970. Climate of Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands. Climatology of the United States 60-52. Silver Spring, MD: U.S. Department of Commerce, Environmental Science Service Administration, Environmental Data Service. 29 p.
  • Holdridge, L.R. 1942. Trees of Puerto Rico. Occasional Paper 1. Río Piedras, PR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Tropical Forest Experiment Station. 105 p. Vol. 1.
  • Holdridge, L.R. 1967. Life zone ecology. San José, Costa Rica: Tropical Science Center. 206 p.
  • Joland, S.D.; Wiedhopt, R.M.; Cole, J.R. 1975. Tumor inhibitory agent from Montezuma speciosissima (Malvaceae). Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences. 64(11): 1889-1890.
  • Liogier, Henri A.; Martorell, Luis F. 1982. Flora of Puerto Rico and adjacent islands: a systematic synopsis. Río Piedras, PR: Editorial de la Universidad de Puerto Rico. 342 p.
  • Little, Elbert L., Jr.; Wadsworth, Frank H. 1964. Common trees of Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Agric. Handb. 249. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture. 548 p.
  • Marrero, José. 1942. A seed storage study of maga. Caribbean Forester. 3(4): 173-184.
  • Marrero, José. 1947. A survey of the forest plantations in the Caribbean National Forest. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan. 167 p. Tesis de M.S.
  • Marrero, José. 1948. Forest planting in the Caribbean National Forest: past experience as a guide for the future. Caribbean Forester. 1: 85-213.
  • Martorell, Luis F. 1975. Annotated food plant catalog of the insects of Puerto Rico. Río Piedras, PR: Agricultural Experiment Station. 303 p.
  • Neal, Marie C. 1965. In gardens of Hawaii. Special Publication 50. Honolulú: Bernice P. Bishop Press. 924 p.
  • Sapath, D.S.; Balaram, P. 1986. Resolution of racemic gossypol and interaction of individual enantiomers with serum albumins and model peptides. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta. 882(2): 183-186.
  • Schubert, Thomas H. 1979. Trees for urban use in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Gen. Tech. Rep. SO-27. New Orleans, LA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Forest Experiment Station. 91 p.
  • Weaver, Peter L. 1987. Tree growth in several tropical forests of Puerto Rico. Res. Pap. SO-152. New Orleans, LA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southern Forest Experiment Station. 15 p.
  • Wolcott, George N. 1939. The entomologist looks at maga. Caribbean Forester. 1(1): 29-30.
  • Wolcott, George N. 1940. A list of woods arranged according to their resistance to the attack of the “polilla”, the dry-wood termite of the West Indies. Caribbean Forester. 1(4): 1-10.
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Endemic frog species to Puerto Rico: Common Coqui

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