Magnolia hypoleuca

At a glance

Lifecycle: Perennial (hardy)
Exposure: Full sun
Frost limit: −23.3 °C

Cultivation

Best grown in a warm position in a moderately rich free soil of an open texture. Hardy to about -20°c. The fleshy roots are easily damaged and any transplanting is best done during a spell of mild moist weather in late spring. A very ornamental plant. Cultivated for its medicinal bark in Japan.

Propagation

Seed - best sown as soon as it is ripe in a cold frame. Stored seed must be kept cold over the winter and should be sown in late winter in a cold frame. The seed usually germinates in the spring but it can take 18 months. Prick out the seedlings into individual pots when they are large enough to handle and grow them on in light shade in a cold frame or greenhouse for at least their first winter. They can be planted out into their permanent positions when they are more than 15cm tall, though should be well mulched and given some protection from winter cold for their first winter or two outdoors. Layering in early spring.

Edible uses

The young leaves and flower buds are boiled and eaten as a vegetable.

Medicinal uses

Anthelmintic, antiemetic, appetizer, deobstruent, emmenagogue, expectorant, ophthalmic, sedative, stomachic, tonic.

Material uses

Wood - soft, fine grained, easily worked. Used for furniture, engraving, utensils etc.