Magnolia Soulange (lat.Magnolia X soulangeana) is a hybrid of the Magnolia family, obtained in 1820 by the French botanist-breeder Etienne Soulange-Bode, by crossing nude and lily-flowered magnolia. Having inherited all the positive qualities from its parents, the plant quickly became popular. Due to the variety of varieties, frost resistance, as well as early, abundant and very beautiful flowering, Magnolia Sulange is grown as an ornamental crop on personal plots, lawns near private houses and cottages.

Botanical description

  • The plant is a treelike shrub or tree, 2-3 to 8 m high, with a spreading crown of a round or pyramidal shape;
  • The root system of this plant is well branched, the main part of the roots is located in the surface layer of the soil;
  • Low branches with smooth curves and beautiful bark grow almost from the ground;
  • The flowers are large, bowl-shaped, or goblet (somewhat similar to tulips), up to 25 cm in diameter, with a unique and well-felt aroma even from a distance. The color of flowers, depending on the variety, can be pure white, pale pink, purple, red and even two-color. This type of magnolia blooms very early - in April-May. In warm spring, flowering can begin even in March.
  • Leaves - oval, obovate, with pointed tips, pale green color, glossy on the front side, matte and covered with villi on the back;
  • Inedible fruits - multileaf (prefabricated leaflets), outwardly similar to cones of conifers. Ripen in September-October. The seeds are large, oval in shape.

On a note. A feature of this culture is the abundant appearance of flowers first, and then foliage. Moreover, flowers occupy most of the shoots.

Magnolia Soulange

In addition to the beauty of abundant flowering, the popularity of this type of magnolia is also given by such a characteristic as winter hardiness - the plant can withstand frosts down to -250C without damaging flower and leaf buds, cracking the bark.

Despite its resistance to frost, Magnolia Sulange is grown mainly in the southern regions with a mild subtropical climate (Black Sea coast, Krasnodar Territory).

Important! The cultivation of certain types of magnolia is possible in a temperate climate. So, if you drive into a search engine "magnolia flower cultivation in the suburbs", you can find a video telling how to grow and care for this beautiful plant in the conditions not only of the environs of Moscow, but also of Siberia and the Far East.

Classification

How magnolia blooms

The Magnolia Sulange species includes 28 varieties. The most common among them are the following:

  • "Alexandrina" - a variety that differs from others with a spreading pyramidal crown. Blooms early. The flowers have a pale pink color and a pleasant delicate aroma.
  • "Amabilis" is a long-lived shrub variety with a compact crown, up to 3-4 m high. White (cream) fragrant flowers, 7-8 cm in diameter, having the shape of a glass, appear simultaneously with the foliage in late April-early May.
  • Alba Superba is one of the most popular varieties. It is a lush shrub, up to 5 m high. The color of flowers in Alba Superba is pale white. Profuse flowering occurs before foliage appears in early May.
  • "Andre Leroy" is a spreading shrub up to 5 m high.Blooms earlier than other varieties - in mid-April. The flowers are cup-shaped, large (up to 15 cm in diameter), have a pink-purple color on the outside and white on the inside.
  • "Lennei" is a variety of Italian selection, which is a spreading bush, up to 5.8-6 m high. It blooms in mid-April-early May. The flowers are large (up to 18 cm in diameter), pink in color with a white center. This variety is characterized by increased resistance to low temperatures and environmental pollution.
  • "Rustica Rubra" is a lush bush, up to 5.2 m high. It blooms in late April and early May. The flowers are cup-shaped, red-purple in color, up to 13 cm in diameter, have a characteristic pleasant aroma.

Magnolia Soulange includes 28 varieties

Important! When buying seedlings, one important condition should be observed - they should be purchased only in specialized nurseries or from their official dealers. This guarantees high varietal purity and authenticity of the purchased planting material.

Agricultural technology of cultivation

Magnolia: tree

Regardless of which Sulange Magnolia variety is purchased, only proper planting and care will make a beautiful and strong plant from a small seedling.

Landing

For planting this culture, choose a place that most fully meets the following requirements:

  • Illumination - well-lit places protected from cold winds and drafts are suitable for magnolias. At the same time, this plant should not be planted in the sun, since at the initial stage of growth, the seedling may not withstand the constant high temperature and die. It will also grow poorly in low and waterlogged places in the spring or during the summer.
  • Soil - the soil of the site for planting magnolia should be loose, fertile, have a close to neutral reaction of the environment (neutral acidity pH = 6.5-7). This decorative culture grows best on cohesive sandy and loamy soils, underlain by sand and sandy loam.
  • Groundwater level - since the surface root system of magnolia is suppressed by groundwater flooding, its maximum level during the season should be at a depth of at least 120 cm.

Magnolia is planted in early spring

On a site selected according to such criteria, magnolia is planted in early spring, after thawing of the soil and melt water, or in autumn (in October). Planting is carried out in pits with a diameter of 1 m and a depth of 30-40 cm. Before planting, a mixture of fertile (sod) soil, low-lying peat and well-decomposed compost is poured into the bottom of the pit in a ratio of 2: 1: 1. The seedling is placed in the center of the pit so that its roots rest on a mound of nutrient mixture poured onto the bottom. The pit with the seedling is filled up gradually, compacting the soil adjacent to the roots. To avoid moisture evaporation, the upper layers of the soil in the pit are not compacted, leaving them in a loose state. After planting, the seedling is watered with warm water from a watering can.

Important! Do not pour all the soil into the pit at once. Part of it should be left for bedding - after a while, the soil in the planting pit will compact and settle, thereby forming a depression near the seedling. If you do not fill it up, excess moisture can collect in it, which, during prolonged stagnation, will inhibit the growth and development of a young plant.

If you plan to plant several varieties, the distance between them in a row is selected taking into account the diameter of their crown and the height of an adult plant. This is necessary so that in the future, neighboring plants do not touch the branches, minimally shading each other. On average, the distance between different varieties should be 2-3 m.When planting several rows, the row spacing should be from 3 to 5 m.

Watering

Magnolia Soulange is a moisture-loving plant. It should be watered often enough using warm rainwater. When watering, care should be taken to ensure that all moisture is absorbed and that there is no stagnation near the plant. Watering frequency - 1 time in 2 days.At a time, no more than 20 liters of water is poured under one plant.

Watering in the summer heat is especially important - at this time, the crop is irrigated using garden sprayers installed next to the shrubs so that small drops of moisture fall on the leaves.

Watering is important

Loosening the soil

Since most of the horses are located in the surface layer of the soil, the soil near the plant should be loosened to a minimum depth (2-3 cm). To avoid damage to the roots, do not dig up and deeply loosen the soil near the plant; all weeds should be removed manually.

Mulching

Low-moor peat and compost are used for mulching this culture. Cover the soil with a layer of mulch in early spring, after surface loosening and moderate watering. In the future, the mulch is periodically updated. A permanent layer of mulch during the warm season should be at least 5 cm thick.

Top dressing

For the first two years, the young plant is not fed. Starting from the 3rd year, during the warm season, two additional dressings are performed:

  • The first feeding is done in early spring, during the awakening of the kidneys. It provides more amicable and lush flowering, active plant growth.
  • The second top dressing is done in summer (until mid-July). It is necessary in order for the bark on young shoots to grow stronger, and they do not freeze out during the winter.

Fertilizers are made with such complex fertilizers as:

  • AGRECOL "For magnolia" - 40-50 g / m2;
  • "Unvarsalnoe" Kimir - 80-100 g / m.

When fertilizing, fertilizers are evenly scattered around the plant, sealed when loosening.

Pruning

Magnolia Sulange is pruned only in the spring. At the same time, thin tips damaged by severe frosts are removed, branches that are in contact with each other grow inside the crown, thickening it. Also, all dried and broken shoots are subject to cutting.

Pest and disease control

The main disease that affects the magnolia bush is chlorosis. It appears on the leaves in the form of yellow spots. The causes of chlorosis are alkaline soil, stagnation of excess moisture in the root zone, flooding of the root system with groundwater. To combat this disease, alkaline soils are acidified with high moor peat, coniferous litter. If the causes of chlorosis are groundwater flooding and poor soil permeability, the plant is transplanted to another place.

Magnolia disease

The main pests that directly or indirectly damage the plant are:

  • Spider mite - especially populates magnolia and other flower crops in dry hot weather. Settling on leaves, it sucks juices out of them. Damaged shoots do not grow, weaken and can freeze out during the winter. To fight the spider mite, magnolia is sprayed with such acaricides as Aktelik, Aktara, Fitoverm, Omayt, Fufanon.
  • Rodents - gnaw the root collar of a young seedling, damage the bark. Injured areas are treated with garden pitch. To combat rodents, the roots of magnolia are covered after the first frosts - in the frozen soil, rodents cannot make their nests and damage the plant during the winter.
  • Moles - making their way, moles often gnaw the roots of magnolia, causing weakening and often death of the plant. To combat them, ultrasonic or homemade scarers are used, traps and traps are placed in the soil, and the wormholes emerging from the surface are flooded with water.

Preparing for the winter season

Young magnolias up to 3 years of age are carefully covered in anticipation of the winter season. To do this, after the first stable frosts, the roots located close to the soil surface are insulated with a layer of mulch, sawdust, and straw. All skeletal branches and the trunk are wrapped with agrofibre or burlap. Branches with unripe wood, as well as those broken by the wind, are cut off. Small bushes are completely covered with agrofibre, spunbond.

In spring, the shelter is removed when a stable positive temperature occurs.

If properly planted and cared for, a small magnolia sapling can grow a strong and lushly flowering plant that adorns any garden or lawn. In addition to the fact that most varieties of Magnolia Soulange are planted in open ground, you can also grow this crop in winter gardens and greenhouses.