Michelia macclurei seed
LATIN NAME: MICHELIA MACCLUREI
COMMON NAME: MacClure’s Michelia
The MacClure’s michelia cups the tall, evergreen tree with the large, glossy, oval leaves and the big, creamy-white, deeply fragrant flowers that open through the spring, each bloom built from the many fleshy petals around the cone of the stamens, the scent carrying some distance on the still air. The flowers appear among the new foliage, and the tree grows into the stately, upright form. It likes the sun or the light shade, and the deep, moist, well-drained soil.
Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology
Within the magnolia family, the michelia group stands out in the research on the large, fragrant flowers and the warm-climate evergreen growth, and the macclurei species appears in the studies of the scent chemistry and the fast humid-forest growth. The work looks at the fragrance compounds that carry on the still air, the flower biology, and the seed handling. The foresters note the straight, useful timber, and the growers of the fragrant evergreen trees keep the species in their catalogues.
Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications
In the warm garden, the MacClure’s michelia cups the white, scented blooms through the spring air. The perfume carries some distance, the flowers feed the beetles that visit the magnolia family, and the timber serves the light construction and the joinery. It thrives in the deep, moist, well-drained, sunny ground with the shelter from the cold wind. Fragrant, stately and evergreen.
To grow the MacClure’s Michelia from seed, soak the seeds in the tepid water for a day, then sow them into the moist, gritty mix of the warm pot, keep the pot in the warm, bright spot and water gently, and the seedlings thread up within a few weeks.
Keep the pot warm and steadily moist, and pot the seedlings on as they grow. The white cups come in a few seasons. Place the young trees in the warm, sheltered spot, and the white cups will cup over the spring.
Growth Rate: Medium
Height: 30′-50′
Light: Full sun/Light shade
Growth Rate: Medium-Fast
Plant Use: Ornamental
Vegetation Type: Evergreen
Leaf Color: Green
Flower Color: White
Scarification: Soak in water, let stand in water for 24 hours.
Germination info: Seed requires 60-120 days cold moist stratification.
Germination: sow seed 3/8″ deep, tamp the soil, mulch the seed bed.
This evergreen Magnolia has large white, very fragrant flowers. It is a large tree, 30-50′ tall.