Magnolia Betty

Magnolia Betty is a beautiful deciduous spring-flowering ornamental tree with large purple, red and white toned flowers that arrive early in the season, but late enough to avoid frost damage.

Magnolia Betty is one of the ‘Little Girl Hybrids’ that were crossed between Magnolia Lilliflora Nigra and Magnolia Stellata Rosea in the USA during the 1950s. The series is more formally known as Kosar-DeVos Hybrids and includes the popular cultivars Magnolia Susan and Magnolia Ricki.

Betty is a vigorous magnolia with tree-like form and huge 20 cm diameter flowers that are deep red-purple outside but creamy white on the inside. Betty was bred to flower early enough to beat most other plants in the garden, but late enough to avoid frosts that can destroy spring flowers. Its foliage is typically magnolia oval in shape and mid-green, but it turns a pretty shade of copper in the autumn.

If you love magnolias this is a reliable choice that avoids blooming during the frosty season and creates a stunning profuse show of huge blooms each year.

Height And Spread of Magnolia Betty
Magnolia Betty grows in tree form rather than a shrub and reaches 2.5 to 4 metres in height and spread over 10-20 years.

How Hardy Is Magnolia Betty
This is a hardy magnolia that copes with below-zero winters if it’s grown in well-drained soil. It needs shelter from cold winds and copes with some drought once established.

How To Use Magnolia Betty
Magnolia Betty is a stunning specimen tree that blooms early and brings plenty of colour to a bare garden. It suits flower borders and standalone spots, and can be grown in a large well-watered and fed container to brighten up a deck or balcony.
Magnolias suit country cottage style gardens, but also modern urban spaces with their large structural blooms and because Betty is virtually no maintenance, it suits wildlife-friendly spaces and gardeners with little time on their hands.

How To Care For Magnolia Betty
Magnolia Betty needs little care if it’s planted in an advantageous spot. Choose moist but well-drained neutral to acidic soil in full sun for the best flowers. Near a sheltering fence or wall is a good spot because harsh, cold winds can damage flowers and foliage.
Pruning isn’t necessary and can ruin the shape, so it’s best to hold off with the secateurs only removing dead or crossed branches in mid-summer after the flowers have fallen.
Water Magnolia Betty well until established and apply a thick layer of acidic mulch such as bracken or pine mulch in very early spring to provide nutrients and trap moisture for the growing season.

Lots more Magnolia varieties on the website.