Care of a Magnolia bush
By Grallen
United Kingdom 
I have had a magnolia bush for some 5 years or more, initially it was in a large tub approx (30" across) filled with the correct compost and fed as per the instructions it sat on my patio out of the morning sun. Each year it has provided plenty of large buds and each year many of them turned brown and fell, other gave a display of white flowers. Last year I prepared a large hole, mixed in the correct compost and planted the bush in a sunny location out of the wind and early morning sun, this spring there are only one or two buds, these turned brown and fell. Many of the leaves have fell over the winter leaving approx a third. Please advise what I have done wrong !!!
18 Apr, 2011
Answers
The cold winter may have been responsible for the buds going brown I lost some too, but not as many as last year because when it was very cold I covered it - looked very odd draped in white! Don't know what to do when it gets too big for this treatment though. But mine is a deciduous one so can't help with the leaf fall. Hope it recovers.
Its possible that the lack of flowers was just the plant settling in after moving - better luck next year.
18 Apr, 2011
Hi Grallan and welcome to GoY. Is your soil acidic or alkaline? When you removed the Magnolia from its pot did you make sure to untangle the roots? Have you kept watered? Did you have a very long period of heavy frost?
18 Apr, 2011