Magnolia Experts - Is this tree worth saving?

12 years ago

We planted a magnolia soulangiana in the the most prominent place in front of our house when we re-did our landscaping three years ago. It was a healthy looking tree when it was planted and we were very careful about watering and preparing a proper hole. I had read a lot about transplant shock on Magnolia so I was not surprised when the next spring it seemed to be unhappy. I kept watering and feeding. The next spring was not much better and this spring is about the same.

Several of the main stems of the plant appear completely dead with no leaves, flowers or buds. Here are some photos:

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The stems to left side at ground level are the ones that appear dead. However, a new stem has gown up and is growing quite well. The stems that are dead have large hole in the bark near ground level. Another photo:

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My question is, should I just cut my losses with this tree and replace it? Or is this still worth salvaging? Any help would be much appreciated.

Other information - we are located in Vancouver BC and the tree gets good sun.

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Comments (3)

gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
12 years ago
First, that's a star magnolia, Magnolia stellata, not a soulangiana or saucer magnolia. And young magnolias are no more difficult to plant than any other young tree. Just follow proper planting procedures and water deeply as necessary through the first couple of growing seasons.

I can't see them clearly but I'd be suspicious of any holes in the stems near the base of the tree - that could be a sign of insect or vole damage, neither of which is a good thing considering the health and appearance of your tree. I also can't see clearly if perhaps it was planted too deeply, another unfortunate situation health-wise if the case.

You could try pruning out the dead portions and see what what remains looks like before yanking (or not) but I'd be inclined to consider replacement for anything that visible at my front entry. And this time maybe you can can get an actual saucer magnolia tree rather than usually multi-stemmed and often very shrubby star magnolia. Or maybe you'd prefer something else altogther.
brandon7 TN_zone7
12 years ago
Due to picture fuzziness and/or lighting, I can't really tell much about the condition of each stem. I can barely see what I think may be the de-barked area you mention, but I'm not sure.

A healthy-to-start-with magnolia should experience minimal transplant shock when planted out. The fact that "several of the main stems" appear dead is a sign of something besides normal transplant issues.

Do you know if your magnolia is grafted? I don't see any signs of a graft union, so hopefully it's not. If it is, the graft union may be buried below grade. This brings up another issue...how deep is your tree planted? Did you identify the root-flare before planting? Magnolias can be pretty forgiving of improper planting depth, but, combined with improper watering and/or amended/altered soil structure, improper planting depth could be detrimental. Also, burying a graft (if any) would probably not be a good idea in this case.

Also, I noticed that you said you continue to water and feed it. Can you describe how you determine when it needs to be watered? Are you testing for soil moisture around AND in the rootball, or, are you confident in your ability to determine soil moisture at root level? What is your watering regime like?

Next WHY are you fertilizing ("feeding") it? Just looking at your soil and other vegetation, I wouldn't guess that it needed any fertilization. Improper fertilization is a big problem with landscape trees and shrubs! Did you have a soil test done or have any valid reason for fertilizing?

I wrote most of this before Gardengal posted, so sorry for any repeats. I have more questions, but we'll start with these.
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why are they over there ... and you could have linked us to such ... as i did below ... that has to be the biggest mag i ever saw... can we have a pic of the whole ... there is some supreme damage under the bark ... but i dont know what ... shriveled leaves after bud out.. is either a frost/freeze event.. or the tree is dead.. and thats all it could do ... regardless.. give it a month.. and lets see if it pushed any more leaves.. if not.. its a goner ... post the extra pics here ... ken Here is a link that might be useful: link
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Sharon, you won't have to use a pot if you are going to cover the ball with burlap. But if using a container for ease of transport, I would certainly keep the burlap on it. Anything you can do to avoid additional stress to that root mass is important. No dragging it, or hoisting it by the trunk, etc. You wouldn't believe how many trees are damaged by improper handling! If these plants are going to be out of the ground for awhile, place them in a protected location out of full sun and any strong winds. Cover the top of the burlap (if in a pot) or the whole root ball with pine straw to avoid drying. You must keep everything moist, but don't soak that root ball. Water the burlap everyday to keep it wet so that it doesn't wick moisture away from the soil. I wouldn't fertilize at all. If you are going to be planting them in full sun, you should probably expose them to this in stages so that they don't burn to a crisp. Certainly you can remove the trellis and let them do their own thing. Hot weather transplanting will be a real stress, so hopefully all of this will take place in the fall or winter. If these are 'Little Gem' magnolias, they will slowly grow to 30 feet or more by 15 feet (or so). People that say that these plants will only grow to 15 feet are one hundred percent wrong! When planting, keep the burlap on until the plant is in the hole (which should be a very wide, dish-shaped hole with NO amendments) and then carefully cut away as much as you can, especially from the top. Some recommend that you can simply fold all of the burlap down into the hole, but I'd prefer that you remove as much as possible without disturbing the roots. Here's where I say," good luck, because you're going to need it, right?" lol! I've got my fingers crossed for you, but don't get discouraged if they don't make it. Even knowledgeable professionals don't like to move established magnolias.
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I'm with gleb and citrange on this one, Dreaming. I, like MeyerMike, try to save just about any plant, but I can almost guarantee you, based on the splitting and peeling bark that your tree is verily and truly dead. The way to find out is to make some pretty severe pruning cuts on the main branches. Leave about 2-3" length from the main trunk. If you cut into live wood, your tree MAY come back. If you cut into dead wood, it's a goner. Based on what I'm seeing in your photos it most likely due to being within a sprinkling system, getting way too much water. That, in combination with a clay soil is fatal to citrus. They need once a week deep watering in our area, and hopefully not planted in an area with alot of clay. Another possibility is the roots were damaged by gopher activity. Look around the tree, behind your fence line in the other lots around you near the tree to see if you've got signs of gopher activity. If you dig out the tree, check for tunneling. The do love to snack on fruit tree roots. I've managed to save my beloved Meyer Lemon from the lone gopher I've seen in our yard since we moved in, in the fall of 2009. We rarely have gopher activity, but I am very quick to to trap them with Black Boxes at the first sign (where there is one, there will be a gazillion.) If you want to replace your orange tree, see if you can find a better spot, with good drainage, and not in the sprinkling system. Put it on a drip where you can do a slow drip for about 30 minutes once or twice a week (depending upon the temperature.) Patty S.
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I don't blame you for being concerned, I think there are few trees as majestic as the Southern Magnolia. I had one planted on my front lawn here in SW Florida 13 months ago, - just outside my screened lanai, A 20 ft tall gem that is now loaded with foot wide, intensely aromatic white blossoms that draw the attention of everyone who walks by. IMHO, well worth the effort and expense. It too has a mild case of fungus on the very bottom leaves, something I plan to eliminate soon by giving it a single spraying of copper sulfate, ( on both sides of the leaves as well as the trunk ). Lowes, Home Depot and Walmart all sell the plastic jugs of sulfate as well as the spray bottle that screws onto the garden hose. In your case three sprayings may be needed, each one two weeks apart. My best advice, not an expert, - perhaps other contributors may have a different solution. Good luck ! This post was edited by jofus on Sun, Jul 13, 14 at 8:35
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
12 years ago
what they said ...

but from another angle ...

its the prime spot in the front of your house.. move it out into the back yard.. and ignore it for a few years..

and put something else there..

and before you do that.. learn how to PLANT PROPERLY .. and to water PROPERLY ...

in my sand.. but for the day i planted it.. i doubt any of my magnolia have ever been watered.. and i suspect you may be watering it too much..

and ditto on fertilizing ..

and yours looks telephone poled.. aka planted too deep ...

these really are NOT foo foo plants [except for the yellow ones] ... but again.. with its prime location.. it has to go.. or be moved...

ken

Magnolia Experts - Is this tree worth saving?

Comments (3)

gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)

brandon7 TN_zone7

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