I have a magnolia sapling that I transplanted from a friend’s flower garden (unwanted growth from mature magnolia nearby) and has been in my yard for a year. It grew several more leaves since winter and seems to enjoy the sun exposure. There is another cluster of leaves right at the base. I want to know what more than I can do for it, and what your thoughts are based on the image. There are a few holes in some leaves so I assume an insecticide is in order. The ground here (NE Arkansas) is heavily clay. How can I help it thrive and ensure continued health? We put pine mulch on it initially but haven’t since planting.
by FrankieJasmineAddams
2 Comments
Nice tree. If you remove the grass for a 4 foot radius and then cover it with pine mulch that would help. A bit of Plant Tone fertilizer before putting down the mulch would be good too. Watering once a week with 2-3 gallons would be good.
Before using an insecticide find out what’s making the holes, you may be able to remove them by hand.
[Growing Southern Magnolia](https://extension.uga.edu/publications/detail.html?number=C974&title=growing-southern-magnolia)
It looks the way it does because of how it was growing to start with. If you keep a central leader growing it should turn out Ok.
The tuft of leaves at the base will grow into a second tree so you will have to decide whether to keep it or not.