Hi Mike,

This year I placed my michelia albas at south facing window. And I try to keep the room cool. I try to let the pot goes completely dry before I water it again. The thing I did different this year is that I bought the water meter thing. I put the meter inside the pot to check out for moisture. When it reads very dry then I would water it again. I hope this would help my albas through this winter. Because last winter my big alba died. And this year I bought more.

Savy

Savy, thank you..

Anyone else ever grow Mechelia indoors? There has to be more people here? If not, then they are surly missing out!

MIke

Hi Charlottelily,

When do you turn on your humidifier? Do you keep the humidifier in the room on all day and all night? Because my plant room is cold it is about 65 degree and when do I turn on my humidifier I have two humidifier I didn't turn it on yet. And 4 albas the big one is by the window and three small ones in the table but I have the led lights turn on day and night to help them grow.

Thanks,
Savy

I just turn humidifier on at night. I've always thought that my plants indoors do better because I keep the house relatively cool. They really don't like the heat turned up.
My challenge with michelia indoors is with scale insects (sticky sap on my floors.) I've wiped them off the underside of leaves in the winter when it was too cold to take them outside. Not such a chore with m.alba's large leaves, but a real pain with m.figo.

Maggie

This post was edited by charlottelily on Thu, Nov 6, 14 at 12:30

I'm right with you, Mike!! This will be my first year for mine.

Here is a pic of mine... Looks great, but I brought her in a few days ago...

Hope to touch base with you, Mike!! I need to call you back. I was so busy bringing in all of my trees the last two days. OMG what a job....

Let me know what you find out about these babies ... I'll be in the same boat as you, sweetie!!!

We will get in touch soon.. Miss you!!! ;-)

I'm worried about the care of mine as well. I plan on taking it upstairs and sitting it close to my t-5 lights.. Limiting the water too... Is that right?

Take care,

Xoxo

Laura

Hi Maggie,

Does your alba grows big even though it is inside year round. Because I'm thinking about not taking my big alba outside next year. I wanna do like you.

Savy

I have a Michelia Champaca, it is 5ft tall now, never bloom, I planted it in the 20 gal pot, I wondering that can I move it to the garage during winter time, my garage has no window, so it is dark if I don't open garage door.

I have a Michelia Champaca, it is 5ft tall now, never bloom, I planted it in the 20 gal pot, I wondering that can I move it to the garage during winter time, my garage has no window, so it is dark if I don't open garage door.

Hi Savy
Now I'm thinking of keeping my gardenia tree & m. figo inside all year round too. The pots are just too heavy to move!
The m, alba puts on growth but I guess it does not grow as big as it would outdoors, which is fine with me as it would be too big for the living room, haha. It does flower nicely though, perhaps not as profusely as it would outside, but since a couple of flowers fills the room with scent, I am happy with that.

I have another gardenia tree (veitchii) that I've always kept indoors, and it's done well (maybe get used to the drier environment?) With the plants out for the summer, I have to do a big clean-up (scale insects) and moving back ritual, which I find is too much work now. Then the plants are in shock & drop leaves, etc for a while. So I hope keeping them all inside will work better for me.

You can see I use a clay pot and it is so-o heavy! I have it on wheels because in the warmer months I push it outside occasionally for a shower to freshen up the leaves :)

Maggie

Aw your plant looks very good. I wish mine looks half a nice as yours.

Savy

Thanks Savy!
Btw, I find the alba does not like strong light in summer. My window is west-facing (living room is the only place big enough for it) and in the winter I can push it right up to the window. But I have to move it back out of direct sunlight in the summer otherwise all the leaves droop from the heat/strong sunlight. Like the gardenia, I find magnolias/michelias prefer filtered light.

Meanwhile, my m. figo looks sad. The leaves are droopy:(
I will have to keep trying to make her feel better.

Good luck with your alba indoors! It will save you on back pain, haha.

Maggie

ps. not flowering now but here is an older photo

For those who'd like to avoid back pain, here is a nice little michelia that does well outside: m. yunnanensis. The flowers are small but bloomed profusely the first year with a fragrance similar to the southern magnolia but lighter. It stayed in a pot outside last winter and came through with flying colours (I think it hit -8C).

it has a neat habit too, with a trim tree shape. Great for a small space.

Maggie

Since 1988 these have all been magnolias, with as I remember it the name Michelia yunnanensis having been replaced with Magnolia dianica, which itself may have been subject to subsequent change at least once, if not twice - I am not sure of the final significance and extent of application of some names I have noticed being used in recent years. One species may have been getting re-named - perhaps spuriously - or some very similar species are all being grown at the same time.

I have seen a long-established Magnolia alba surrounded by pavement in a more or less full sun position in the Los Angeles area so apparently it can actually take hot sun.

I'm not versed in the data leading to all these plants being grouped under magnolia, however as an enthusiast I do find it fairly easy to spot a michelia versus a magnolia, and sometimes it is easier to refer to michelia for example. Whatever the name, I just love them all:) I bought the yunnanensis in 2013 and that was how it was tagged, so I guess the industry is slow to make the changes.
I would also agree that in an outdoor setting, plants can survive and flourish under less than ideal conditions. But in an artificial indoors setting, I did find that my alba really suffered in the heat of a west-facing window.

Hi charlottelily,

How do you care for your alba in a ceramic pot. Several of mine that I pot in a clay pots died. Over the winter when the weather is getting cold the pot seem to be very cold then when I watered it the plant began to died slowly. Next thing you know by spring come all the plant have is a twig. Do you live in the cold climate too? I know the nursery said it would be best in a ceramic pot but I never have any success growing my albas in the ceramic pot. I have several of those died on me in a ceramic pot. Now I just have them in a black nursery pot about 10 inch. I think I let them grow root bound a litte bit before I transplant them.

Savy

Any kind of plant grown indoors that can get mites may become full of them in a hot position. So I wonder if that is what happend to the one magnolia. Never knowingly let a tree become root-bound if you want good long-term results. Even bonsai are taken out of the pots regularly, have the roots cut back in order to make them being in small containers for long periods work.

Magnolia Society International classification pages is using system that appears to put the one kind under Magnolia laevifolia, as is this offering (which may be of interest for its own sake).

Here is a link that might be useful: Cistus Nursery : Mail Order : Plant Catalog : M-P

This post was edited by bboy on Fri, Nov 21, 14 at 15:57

I think Zone 8? We have little microclimates within our area, but a few times we may get down to -10C. I am intrigued and tempted when I hear people grow m. figo outside and are pushing the limits. My uncle had quite a mature figo right by the house until finally one cold winter killed it. So I don't want to risk the heartache.

I confess the main reason I use a ceramic pot is because they look nicer, haha. I don't worry that much about the pot being cold. My main concern is how dry the air is in the winter. I don't like a hot house, so my heat is not turned up very high (that heat register right by pot is closed off). But I still find I have to water my plants more carefully than in the summer. Of course, the plant is not as happy, might lose a few leaves but it always rebounds in the spring.

The pot is 18" diameter across the top and 15" tall. The nursery pot was probably about 10" ? I transplanted into big pot thinking I would keep it in there long term so as to disturb as little as possible, especially when the plant is a bit hard to handle (big leaves, etc)

Oh my gosh, mites! They are the bane of my existence. So annoying.

My m. figo has finally stopped dropping leaves. Hope she is truly settling in and not just playing with me.

Thanks for that link, bboy. Very excited to see Cistus might be able to ship up to me in Canada. I see the figo var. skinneriana is 'Zone 7' - hmmmmm...

Maggie

Hi Laura, do you still have this tree? How did it do? Hugs to you my friend.. miss you