A Question I get all of the time:

What type of magnolia tree will grow in my area?

Answer:

I can't give you an absolute answer, but this is the information that I found. You need to go by your growing zone, but even within a zone there are temperature differences as well as soil and moisture differences. A good rule of thumb is that if you don't see any others in your area of the type you are thinking about planting, ask a local nursery if it will grow there. Sometimes a person can get a magnolia to thrive if isolated conditions so allow even in an area where a particular variety isn't usually found. For instance, I got an e-mail from someone in Aurora, Colorado who had blooms on a grandiflora, and they typically never survive there. Actually, during that time frame, the weather for several years was atypically mild. Over the long haul I doubt if it will survive. As another example, big leaf magnolias (the ones I call cowcumber magnolias) don't grow on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, but a few have been known to survive and bloom. My neighbor had one until he sold the house, the new people transplanted it, and it died. Stupid people. I loved that magnolia tree. Now, I'm struggling to grow my second one, and it is barely surviving. However, an e-mail friend has some in Mobile that are very large and bloom every year. They are more at home further north in the area where I grew up - Franklin County. They grow wild there. I guess what I'm saying is that species survive where conditions are best conducive to their characteristics. You can try, but you won't always succeed if you battle Mother Nature.

This information came from "Urban Tree ID", Dr. Alice B. Russell, NCSU...

Magnolia stellata - Star
Zones 3-4
Deciduous, 10 - 20 ft., large shrub to small tree

Magnolia soulangiana
Zones 4-9
Deciduous, 20-30 ft.

Magnolia virgiana
Zones 5-9
Native of the US, evergreen or deciduous, 15 - 60 ft.

Magnolia grandiflora
Zones 7-9
Evergreen 50 - 80 ft.

Question:

I did a search on the Internet to get information on growing a Magnolia tree from a seed... and hit the mother lode with your site. However, as fully detailed and beautiful as it was, I still have a few questions. I live in Mountain Home, Arkansas, which is very far North close to the Missouri border. My father was from Mississippi and I would like to have a Magnolia tree in my yard as a "memorial" tree from his boyhood home. I heard someone say that I could grow a tree from a seed instead of buying a tree - and so, here I am. We have a row of very large Magnolia trees where I work and I've not paid enough attention to know if the pods/etc. are exactly like your pictures. When and how would I go about harvesting these seeds and planting them? Also, at my mother-in-laws house there is a Magnolia tree that my husband remembers being planted when he was a boy (he's 32) and which is still a very short tree. Only about 12-15 ft tall at the most. My husband thinks that it's so short because the soil is poor. But, do you think this could be a dwarf variety? I ask because I would hate to get seeds from it if they wouldn't make a large tree. Any help that you could give me in this endeavor would be greatly appreciated.

Answer:

First of all, seeds ripen in September and October, though they seem to be ripening sooner these days. There is more information on planting seeds on my "Evolution of a Magnolia" page. I've never grown a tree from seed, and know they take a long time to mature and bloom unless you get the Little Gem, which grows fairly tall but is still half the size of a Grandiflora. Since I don't have any idea what type of magnolia your mother-in-law has, I can't say why it isn't any taller. If you are able to grow a tree from seed, it won't bloom for 15-20 years, or so "they" say.

Question:

Hi, There! I discovered your web page this morning and thoroughly enjoyed the budding process of the magnolia. I purchased an "Edith Brune"sp? last fall and fortunately it is still alive. I have noticed however that 4-5 green leaves have dropped off. I'm not sure if this is normal this time of year - if a squirrel raced through the tree, or perhaps the wind was the problem. Can you help? Thanks so much.

Answer:

You didn't say where you are from, but if you are having a long, dry spell like we've had for the past few years, it may need water. When I planted my Gem Magnolia last year, the nursery told me to water it every day and give it some liquid fertilizer each month. If you didn't do that, maybe you could start now and it might help. The same thing happened to me this year with my Magnolia Soulangeana (Japanese Magnolia). About 5-6 rows of leaves just died. We are in the midst of a terrible drought and I'm afraid I've not been watering enough. Our soil is very porous and water drains like a sieve. I've started watering more. I'm not familiar with your variety. Good luck. P.S. Remember that magnolias do drop a lot of leaves, and older leaves often have spots, discolorations, and wear and tear on them.

Question:

What a wonderful web site. I was given 2 of these Magnolia blooms & they have really captured me! I called the florist to find out if I could start them to grow just from the branches that were given to me & they told me to use the Root System powder. But according to your web site I should wait for the pods to drop off? Also do they like full sunlight or more of a shaded area? ANY help you send my way will be greatly appreciated.

Answer:

If you are talking about two magnolia blossoms that have been cut from a live tree, you won't be able to propagate from seeds from the pod. It takes until fall for the seed pod to develop, and it has to be ON the tree, not on a cut blossom. As for trying to root from a cut blossom, I don't think it will work. A cutting has to be made from the current season's growth, and not have a bud or a flower on it. Here are the instructions I found in a book:

Cut a soft terminal branch 3-5" long in early to mid summer just above a bud. Cut all leaves off except for the top 3 or 4 . If the remaining leaves are long, cut them in half. Cut off a thin strip of wood near the base of the cutting, including the bud. Insert the end of the stem in a rooting hormone and place in a mixture of 50/50 peat moss and grit. Keep moist but not too wet. Roots may start to form in two months. I haven't done this, so I can't vouch for it. I don't have good luck growing from root cuttings, but you can try. Good luck.

They like full sunlight in order to bloom, but can tolerate shade if you don't want the blossoms.

Question:

My dog eats these pods... are they bad for him?

Answer:

I doubt it, but I'm not really sure. You might want to ask a Vet, or look up poisonous plants. Around here, squirrels devour the seeds, chewing the pods to pieces trying to get the seeds out. Doesn't seem to hurt them. Also, another source says that birds eat them. I've never seen that happen, but can't say it doesn't. One source does indicate that the bark (of the tree, not the dog) can be irritating - don't ask me how. It is also said that parts of the tree are used for medicinal purposes. I don't know which parts, and I would never dare to experiment. Supposedly, some parts of the magnolia tree have been used for medicinal purposes.

Question:

Is there any treatment to cause the leaves to hold onto the tree? The leaves are so unwieldy.

Answer:

I had to laugh at this one!

Another version of this question is something like:

I have a Magnolia tree and the leaves are turning brown and falling off….any ideas?

A serious question, I'm sure, but the answer has to be a resounding "NO" if you are asking about the Magnolia Grandiflora. Just about its only negative characteristic is the fact that the leaves seem to fall all year long and blow all over the lawn. In truth, they fall more at certain times of the year, one of which is the time when it is blooming. Most men who usually do most of the mowing of lawns hate the magnolias; my elderly neighbor called it a "trash" tree and wanted to get rid of his. It's the women who won't let the men chop them down! I think one of the reasons the Grandiflora leaves are so bothersome is that they are thick, tough, large and slow to decompose. When you rake them, they take up lots of space in a bag or trash can.

The leaves fall off along the branches as the new growth comes on. Looking underneath, or inside a magnolia tree, you see lots of branches that are bare except for at the ends. Its just the natural process of the tree's growth. So, if your tree is losing a tremendous amount of leaves, especially in the spring, that is normal. They have to fall off to make room for new leaves.

Also, an unusually dry season will will cause the tree to lose leaves; even cause them to drop a year after the dry year because the tree was damaged from drought.

Question:

Hope you can help me! I have a newly transplanted magnolia tree, about 5 feet tall,beautiful. I live in southwest Florida which has mild winters. Today I found small black spots on underside leaves. How should I treat it? would appreciate any information. Thank you. I received it for Christmas.

Answer: As I said, I'm no expert on magnolias. I don't know how to treat those black spots. This past year all of our magnolias had those spots on them. Supposedly the black spots do not harm the tree. Look at this page and see if you can find an answer:
You may can spray them with something.
http://home.att.net/~velvet-hammer/information.html
Hope something there helps you.

Question from New Orleans Area:

I live in the area of Hurricane Katrina. I had a lovely magnolia tree that looks dead now. It was under water for about 12 days. Is there any hope?

Answer:

No, probably not. If it was under water for 12 days, the roots may have been damaged. Furthermore, if the water was salty, as in the Gulf of Mexico, and Lake Ponchetrain, salt water probably killed it. It is now nearly 10 months since Katrina hit, and many magnolias in my area were killed that were in the surge. Others had so much salt spray from the salty rain that they were badly damaged. It turns out that a lot of our magnolia trees did bloom this year. Some were farther inland, or were protected from the strong winds and salty rain. I did see that the blooms were much smaller, and even the trees that had beautiful blossoms had very few leaves, and some of the branches are just now dying. The damage was long-lasting.

More follows...

(Answered a few months after Katrina) Magnolias don't like to have their feet wet. Also, salt water will kill plants. Basically, Magnolia Grandifloras need adequate water, but don't do well if their roots stay wet. If the water your magnolia was in was salt water, your tree might be dead. Some trees do better than others in salt water. Here on the Coast, the surge came in and went out basically in one day. The surge was salty, as was the wind spray coming off the Gulf. Trees as far inland as Interstate 10 have turned brown from the spray. Some plants were killed, especially Azaleas. Magnolias seem to still be alive around here, except for immediately in the storm surge (and they are dead), but they look very scraggly. Leaves are small and few. Only time will tell if they come back next spring. I hope so. As for your magnolia, I would never cut down a magnolia until you wait through the winter and see what it does next spring and summer. Then, if it shows no sign of life, you probably should cut it down and replace it. Experts are advising that people should water their Live oaks generously to wash the salt on down and out, so you might try that on your magnolias that got a lot of salt water.

Question about why magnolia tree isn't blooming:

I wonder if you would know what is going on with my magnolia. I purchased a tree 7 years ago from Pikes and it was so about 6 feet but no bloom, which I thought was normal. My tree never bloomed. I see that the leaves are greener, so it might bee another type of a magnolia, but why isn't it blooming? Any ideas?

Answer:

I've gotten this question before, and I think I need to link this page to more of my magnolia pages, because I just can't find the time to keep answering it. For one thing, people usually don't tell me what KIND of magnolia they have. When you purchase a magnolia tree, it's good to know what you have.

So, I'll attempt to answer. If the tree didn't have an identification tag on it stating the variety of magnolia, you may have a common woods Magnolia grandiflora. Now, if this tree was grown from seed, you will be in for a very long wait, as trees grown from seed sometimes don't bloom for 15 - 20 years. Good growers sell cultivars that have been bred to bloom young, such as the Little Gem. They also graft their stock. I have a magnolia that hasn't bloomed in over 20 years, and I think I got it at Wal-Mart or somewhere like that. It just said, "Southern Magnolia", or something to that effect. . Silly me - I thought they all bloomed! Now when I purchase one, I make sure it is a cultivar, or one cultivated to bloom before I am senile. They need to have a name, such as Edith Brogue, or Brown Bracken.

Even then, after you plant any magnolia but a Little Gem, it's 2-3 years before they get their roots established and start growing and bloom. I'm still waiting for my Brown Bracken to bloom, and this is its third year. It has a bud on it when I purchased it, and opened to display a spectacular blossom. Little Gems have been bred to be magnificent flowerers. Late blooming news - it now has a few buds on it this year (three years after I planted it).

Another reason could be that it simply isn't getting enough sunshine. They have to have a lot of sun to bloom, and if they get a lot of shade, they don't. Case in point: a tree we transplanted to go between our property line and a neighbor's. Their side of the tree is by a driveway, and it gets full sun most of the day. My side is by the woods, and is shady most of the day. Guess which side has the blossoms. Not mine.

Question:

I have a star magnolia tree (I think). It has grown about 6 feet since I planted in 2000. I have identified the leaves and am pretty sure it is truly a magnolia. I live in northwest IN. My magnolia has never bloomed. Am I doing something wrong? What can I do?
PLEASE HELP ME

In other words - My magnolia won't bloom. What is wrong?

Answer:

First of all, there is no way for me to know if it is a star magnolia, or you, for that matter, unless you purchased it and know that it is a magnolia, or you have seen it bloom at one time.

The general question about not blooming has been answered in the above question or on my other magnolia pages; however, review these points:

1. Magnolias have to adjust to their surroundings. Usually after they have been planted, even if they are in bloom when you plant them from a pot, they have to have time to send out roots, and become acclimated to your soil and your location. Give them three - four years.
2. Make sure that your magnolia gets lots of direct sunlight, especially Magnolia grandifloras. If they don't get almost a full day of sun, they will not bloom.
3. Magnolias should be fertilized. Use a liquid, acidic fertilizer for the first few years for small magnolias. As they grow larger, use granular. I really don't know how much to suggest. Ask a garden center or your county agent. However, magnolias in the wild bloom like crazy because they just do, and maybe because leaves and blossoms and vegetation decompose around them and make their own nutrients that are then absorbed into the ground and into the roots.
4. Be sure they are not water-logged. Most have to be well-watered, but their feet like to be dry and not stand in water.
5. If magnolias are grown from seed, and not cultivated or grafted, they may take 15 - 20 years to bloom. The seed may not even product a magnolia that looks like the parent tree. This is a fact I got from a book on raising them from seed.
6. The soil must be right. Most magnolias, especially the grandiflora, need soil that is slightly acidic.
7. The roots like to spread out pretty far just under the soil. The roots look like worms, also, slightly creepy in color and texture. They have to have room to do that.
8. If you have just been through a hurricane, your tree will look awful, but may still bloom. Be sure to give it some fertilizer, but not too much. I suggest liquid for the small trees. You will have to do some research to find out how much for larger trees.
9. Are you sure you live in a zone where your magnolia is supposed to live? ( See above for zones).
10. I have problems with some of mine not blooming, also, if that makes you feel better. I've got one that I got from a cheap place that is over 20 years old and has never had a single bloom. It was in the shade of other trees until Hurricane Katrina destroyed some trees around it, so maybe it will bloom.
11. If these answers don't fit, I don't know why your magnolia isn't blooming. If all else fails, maybe you just don't have a green thumb or your soil is not appropriate.

Question:

The tree is about 50 years old & needs some type of help. The tree is about 25’ high with a roundish shape & doesn’t seem to grow any more. The leaves seem sparse & it does flower, but I notice other trees in the neighborhood are fuller with more leaves & flowers. I am guessing about it needing feeding, but this shouldn’t hurt if I do it right. It drops brownish-black cones & appears to have too many small branches that are dead.

Answer:

Your tree is fairly old. I have an ancient magnolia that was large at the time we built our home 29 years ago. It looks as you describe yours. They are, indeed, old trees. Probably mine is a wild one, as this was a wooded area before development. Mine is very tall, and has small, dead branches all over. It usually blooms, but this year, after Hurricane Katrina, so far I haven't seen a bloom. It has woodpecker holes all over it. Mine is probably lots taller than yours, and not as full around. It isn't pretty, but I would never cut mine down. It sends out suckers from the base, and along the lower trunk. The new growth is really lush. I would say that our trees are suffering from old age. Other than get an expert out with a bucket ladder to trim it, I don't know of any way to get rid of the dead twigs and branches. It gets fertilized when I fertilize the grass, and that's about it.

The brownish-black cones I'm not sure about. They are probably the dried seed pods that fall after the petals have fallen off the bloom, and the seed pod has made seeds and then dried up. Around here, they drop off before they are dried up and brown - that is, if the squirrels don't eat the pods first.

Question:

How should I fertilize my magnolia after planting it?

Answer:

One of my links on my "Magnolia Information" page (The University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Cooperative Extension Service, in an article called "Growing Southern Magnolia" by Gary L. Wade, Extension Horticulturist) gives this information, and I quote, "Wait until the tree is established and putting forth new growth before fertilizing. Once established, growth can be accelerated with light frequent applications of fertilizer during the first three growing seasons. Measure an area three times the canopy spread, then broadcast one pound (2 cups) of 8-8-8 or 10-10-10 fertilizer per 100 square feet in March, May, July and September. By the fourth growing season, reduce the application frequency to once or twice a year."

However, I do give mine several "doses" of a liquid fertilizer the first few years. It hasn't hurt, and probably has helped, them.

Question:

How do I prune my tree? or, If I top my tree, will it make it spread out more?

Answer:

God did not create the magnolia tree to be pruned. He created it to spread it's beautiful limbs as wide as they can go so that as many blooms as the tree can produce can grace them. Their natural shape is beautiful. If you want to shape and trim a tree, plant a nice little spruce and make it look just like a little stylized Christmas tree. If you need to control your magnolia tree, you aren't a magnolia tree person.

I really don't know how you can properly prune a magnolia tree. From experience, I know that if you break or cut off a magnolia blossom (and magnolia flowers grow on the tips of branches), it takes a few years for the limb to make a new limb from a node somewhere on the tree, so I would surmise that pruning the side branches would not make it look pretty. My advice: Don't trim the branches. Also, topping a magnolia tree, to me, is like scalping a person. Pruning the bottom branches (i.e., cutting them back to the trunk) , to me, is a sin, so I would not advise doing that, either. Just don't plant a magnolia tree unless you have the space for it to grow up and out. Don't plant one too close to a house, or it will be "flat-nosed" on the house side. And, no, I don't know if the roots will damage your house foundation. This is a question you need to ask an expert, which I'm not.

Question:

Where can I learn more about magnolia trees and their cultivars:

Answer:

I have two great books:

Graham Rankin's book, Magnolias, A Care Manual is almost a bible of information on magnolias, and has beautiful photographs of all kinds of magnolias that you can use for identification purposes. He also tells how to propagate them.

Magnolias, A Gardener's Guide by Jim Gardiner is also a good book on magnolias.

If you are serious about magnolias, I suggest purchasing one or more of these books.

Other Helpful Pages:

Magnolia Information

Evolution of a Magnolia Blossom

Little Gem Magnolia

If you have questions, and they weren't answered here you may want to do a
search on the Internet, go to a good library, or purchase a good book. I'm sorry, but I cannot answer individual questions. And I no longer post your questions here and answer them.
I just don't have the time.
You might try Googling to see if you can find the answer to your question or problem.
Thanks for visiting my page.