Dorothy J. Callaway was born in Alabama and grew up in Bishop, Georgia. She was exposed to natural history (plant science in particular) at an early age through her parents. She attended the University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia, and received a B.S. in horticulture, followed by an M.S. in botany from the L. H. Bailey Hortorium at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York. Her thesis research involved the taxonomic study of magnolias cultivated in North America. Since then she has written a number of articles on magnolias for major botanical and horticultural journals. Her aims in writing this book are to compile scattered information into a single reference and to introduce others to the fascinating variety of the genus. Dorothy Callaway has served as the official registrar for magnolia cultivars and as a member of the board of trustees of the Magnolia Society, Inc.
