2021 – CHW
Jaimie undertook 30 separate magnolia crosses in April. Twenty-two of these have now ‘taken’ although two well formed seedpods dropped off in strong winds recently. The crosses were undertaken in a particularly fine warm week when the flowers were very receptive to fertilisation. This is, by any standard, an exceptional ‘take’ and the best for several years. The seed will be collected in a month or so when fully ripe.

Here is one example of cross No. 18.

How many of the seeds will we manage to germinate, how many years before they grow to flowering size, and how many will then be good enough to merit a name? Only a very few I suspect in 12 to 18 years’ time.

For the record here is a full list of the crosses undertaken also showing those which failed this time around.(No seed produced on ones in italics)

1. M ‘Burncoose’ x ‘Darjeeling- Large seed pod produced but was snapped off
2. ‘Felix Jury’ x ‘Betty Jessel’
3. ‘Purple Sensation’ x ‘Felix Jury ‘
4. ‘Sir Harold Hiller’ x ‘Lanarth Surprise ‘
5. ‘Betty Jessel’x ‘Feix Jury’
6. ‘Betty Jessel ‘ x ‘Lanarth’ NZ
7. ‘Rebecca’s Perfume’ x ‘Betty Jessel’
8. ‘Philip Tregunna’ x ‘Felix Jury’
9. ‘Philip Tregunna’ x ‘Darjeeling’
10. ‘Angelica’ x i ‘Darjeeling
11. ‘Angelica’ x ‘Betty Jessel’
12. ‘Wakehurst’ x ‘felix Jury’
13. ‘Aurora’ x ‘Darjeeling’
14. ‘Black Tulip’ x ‘JC Williams’ ( this has been named now) x ‘Felix Jury’
15. ‘Darjeeling’ x ‘Felix Jury’ Large seed pod produced but was snapped off
16. ‘JC Williams x ‘Felix Jury’
17. ‘Atlas x ‘Darjeeling’
18. ‘Atlas x ‘Felix Jury’
19. ‘Atlas x ‘Sunrise’
20. Michelia doltsopa ‘Silver Cloud’ x ‘Sunrise’
21. ‘Mr Julian’ x ‘Vulcan’
22. ‘Betty Jessel ‘ x ‘Vulcan’
23. ‘Red Lion’ x ‘Vulcan’
24. ‘Apollo’ x ‘Vulcan’
25. ‘Purple Sensation’ x ‘Vulcan’
26. ‘Felix Jury’ x ‘Genie’
27. ‘Sunrise, x ‘Atlas’
28. ‘Sunrise’ x Michelia doltsopa ‘Silver Cloud’