MAGNOLIA

MAGNOLIAS, named after the French botanist Pierre Magnol, are an ancient genus and it is thought that pollination was by beetles as the trees appeared before bees. Fossilised remains from the family are 95 million years old.

The main centre of distribution is eastern and southeastern Asia with a secondary centre in eastern North America, Central America, the West Indies and South America.

LARGE and SPECIMEN sized magnolias are almost all grafted plants. Many are also very rare.

LARGE plants are 2-3 year old grafts and SPECIMEN plants 3-5 year old grafts.

Different Magnolia varieties grow at very different speeds and therefore the size of a LARGE or a SPECIMEN plant and the exact pot size it is delivered in can vary markedly for plants of identical age and also on time of year, since Magnolias can grow very quickly.

Many more magnolia pictures can be found on the Caerhays Website and The Garden Diary.

Full Plant Details - Sun/Soil & other attributes

Endangered in the wild
These plants are listed on the International Union for Conservation of Nature's list of 'Red Plants'. This is a list of threatened species in the wild, they are either critically, endangered or vulnerable to extinction.

Vulnerable
Pests & Diseases
Scale insects, honey fungus, coral spot.
Place of origin
Yunnan and Sichuan Provinces, China
Deciduous
Oval, light- to mid-green leaves to 18cm (7in) long.
Red
Shades of pink
All shades of pink through to Carmine (red)

Rose-red / rose-pink
Goblet-shaped
To cup-shaped to 20cm (8in) across
Fully hardy
Height
15m (49ft)
Spread
10m (33ft)
Tree
Hardy - cold winter
Hardy in most places throughout the UK even in severe winters. May not withstand open/exposed sites or central/northern locations. Plant can withstand temperatures down to -15°C (5°F)
Fertile moist well-drained soil
Humus-rich
Neutral to acid soil
Full sun
Shelter from strong winds
Partial shade
Broadly conical
Rounded to broadly spreading