I ROUNDED a corner in Tralee to be greeted by a dazzling sight a magnolia in full creamy white flowers with a shading of pink in generous array held upright on naked branches silhouetted against the rather sombre grey walls of a late Georgian terrace house. An exhilarating sight, the bold show drew many admiring glances in the April sunshine, all the more for the surprise at such an exuberant display in a tiny patch of garden on the edge of the street. We do not expect to see magnolias, certainly not Magnolia x soulangeona, which it was, used in this way. In general, we think of this small tree as a specimen for larger gardens where a sufficiency of space can be allotted for a flowering of a few weeks. Bat someone a generation ago had, been brave and risked all more of us could do likewise.
True, a leafy tree 20 or so feet high might be a bit excessive against every house wall but there are places where we could sacrifice all else for a very aristocratic spring greeting. The anticipation could hang in the air for weeks and weeks and afterwards the memory will linger long.
Magnolia x soulangeana is the most popular of the family in our gardens. When allowed to grow freely as a specimen it makes a broad, shapely tree often wider it is than high. There are many named forms around with varying degrees of purple or rosy shading and staining on the petals. In some instants the flowers are completely rosy purple. So the prospective customer may make his or herb choice. The dark shading is not so telling in the garden to my mind and I would always opt for one with good white flowers and minimal purple flush at the base. The forms to look for are Brozzonii, Alba Superba or Superba.
There is a general myth about that all magnolias need an acid soil. Not so. Many will thrive on a limey soil as visitors to the gardens at Birr Castle, Co Offaly will note. Over the past 50 and more years many magnolias have been tried there and have flourished. Readers will often note in English oriented books that such and such a magnolia will not grow on chalk. Chalk soils are alkaline and so it is sometimes falsely assumed that a limey soil, which is also alkaline, will be repugnant to the plant. Lime and "chalk are very different in their effects on plants.
At they do need is a rich and retentive soil. Light sandy conditions would not be suitable. Lots of leaf mould or peat can also be helpful to get young plants established. Depending on the levels of lime in the soil, plants may get chloritic and leaves show an anaemic yellow tinge. Generous feeding with leaf mould or well rotted, .manure and dressing with peat should help remedy this.
Planting aspect is also important as emerging buds and flowers can be quick blackened and ruled by early morning sun after night frost. So choose a position sheltered from the east and open to south ore west that way, the flowers can thaw out slowly before the sun reaches them.
In smaller gardens, Magnolia stellata will be the one to plant. It grows slowly and makes a compact, rounded shrub. Eventually it can reach ten or more feet high and half as much again in width. But don't be put off by that prospect. It can take a generation to get so big and the shrub will give years and years of pleasure at a modest size. It too flowers on bare branches and the flowers are fragrant, opening white and fading to pale pink. There is a pink version Magnolia stellata `Rosea' which is attractive.
FOR those who really do fear the soil is too, too alkaline I suggest Magnolia x lobernie. This will make a substantial small tree up to 25 feet high. Flowering in April in white or pink, the show can be enchanting. Mine always looks a trifle jaundiced while the leaves develop after flowering. But this momentary phase always passes and by midsummer it is the picture of green health.