Magnolia Fairy Blush - Michelia hybrid

Magnolia Fairy Blush, also known as Michelia hybrid, is a perfectly hardy and remarkably floriferous New Zealand creation. It is a vigorous evergreen bush with a pleasant fragrant pale pink to lilac spring flowering. It has a rounded habit and bears dense foliage. Similar to the magnolia, it bears shiny dark green foliage and cup-shaped flowers. It is a unique, rare plant, seemingly inaccessible, but in reality, no more demanding than its cousin, the magnolia. It can be grown in full sun or partial shade, in a well-worked, light, neutral, or slightly acidic soil.

Magnolia Fairy Blush belongs to the Magnoliaceae family. It is the result of cross-breeding between Michelia doltsopa, native to the eastern Himalayas, Michelia yunnanensis (or Magnolia laevifolia), native to Tibet, and Michelia figo, native to western China. It combines all the qualities inherited from its parents. It is an evergreen bush with a compact habit, both erect and spreading. Its vegetation is dense, with multiple stems and numerous branches. Depending on growing conditions (container or open ground), it will reach a height of 0.80 m to 3 m (2.6 ft to 9.8 ft) and almost the same in width. Its growth is slow, and the adult size has not yet been defined, as horticulturists lack hindsight for this brand-new creation. Flowering begins in March-April and ends in June. The abundant flowers blossom in the axils of each leaf, jostling and succeeding each other, emitting a pleasant, slightly lemony fragrance. Bursting open from velvety reddish buds, they bloom into 10 cm (3.9 in) wide open cups, formed by 6 waxy petals with a subtle pale pink colour with lilac edges, becoming whiter as the season progresses. A bouquet of prominent stamens surrounding a granular club-shaped pistil is revealed in their centre. The foliage is fairly dark green, fresh and shiny, composed of entire and ovate leaves, 8 cm to 10 cm (3.1 in to 3.9 in) long.

Plant Michelia Fairy Blush to showcase it: either on its own, or in groups of three, near a pathway to enjoy its fragrance, or even in large containers on a terrace. It will work wonders as a standalone on a lawn, but also mixed in a flower bed or in a free hedge with viburnums (Viburnum odoratissimum), privets (Ligustrum japonicum), and even in a trimmed hedge.

Michelia champaca, a close relative, is a shrub cultivated in India, from which a highly sought-after essential oil is extracted for perfumery.