Magnolia Cultivars L

'Lanarth'

See Magnolia campbellii ‘Lanarth’.

'Laura Saylor'

Flowers precocious, April in S England, large, upright and cup-shaped; tepals 9–12, bright pink outside, pale pink – almost white – inside; leaves resembling M. sprengeri but only about ¾ the size. An erect small tree raised 1976 by Phil Savage, MI, and named for his daughter. Commended by Philippe de Spoelberch as ‘spectacular, hardy’ (pers. comm. 2021).

Magnolia 'Laura Saylor' (10th April 2010). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

Magnolia 'Laura Saylor' (10th April 2010). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

Magnolia 'Laura Saylor' can put on a spectacular show (13th April 2015). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

Magnolia 'Laura Saylor' in fruit (31st October 2015). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

'Leda'

Flowers precocious and early, cup-and-saucer-shaped to 23 cm across, pure white, susceptible to frost; tepals 9, thick and pointed. A large shrub or small tree, very beautiful when climate and season allow. This variety has a complex and confusing history. Raised around 1973 from open pollinated seed of M. ‘Pegasus’ grown at Chyverton, Cornwall (as M. cylindrica), by Dutch nurseryman Dick van Gelderen, it was then given to fellow Boskoop nurseryman Rein Bulk, who on flowering it suspected M. campbellii influence. It was distributed in the Dutch nursery trade both as M. cylindrica and (prior to registration) M. ‘Leda’, allowing the synonym ‘White Lips’ to be inadvertantly registered: see Lobdell (2021) and Arboretum Wespelaar (2022) for further detail. Its early flowering can be a problem in some climates: ‘always frosted’ notes Philippe de Spoelberch, Belgium (pers. comm. 2021). In Greek mythology, Leda was seduced or raped by Zeus in the form of a swan, hatching Helen of Troy from one of the resulting eggs.

Large, open, loosely held flowers make Magnolia 'Leda' particularly attractive. Photographed on a good year when not spoiled by frost, to which it is unfortunately susceptible. RHS Garden Wisley, UK, March 2023. Image Jack Aldridge.

Magnolia 'Leda' unfurling on Battleston Hill, RHS Garden Wisley, UK. March 2022. Image Jack Aldridge.

Magnolia 'Leda' in Belgium – note some browning even when flowering relatively late (11th April 2010). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

Magnolia 'Leda' in Belgium (11th April 2010). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

'Lemon Star'

Flowers appearing with or just before the leaves (from late March, S England), opening wide; tepals 6, narrow, yellow-green outside, creamy white inside – a ‘lemon ice cream’ effect. A small, spreading tree with rich golden brown autumn colour. From a cross made by August Kehr, 1992; grown at Arboretum Wespelaar and selected by Philippe de Spoelberch. Williams, Gardiner & Gallagher (2016) highlight it as ‘stunningly different’.

Magnolia 'Lemon Star' (19th April 2016). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

Autumn colour in Magnolia 'Lemon Star' (5th November 2006). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

'Lennei'

See Magnolia × soulangeana ‘Lennei’.

'Lennei Alba'

See Magnolia × soulangeana ‘Lennei Alba’.

'Leonard Messel'

See Magnolia × loebneri ‘Leonard Messel’.

'Lilenne'

See Magnolia × soulangeana ‘Lilenne’.

'Lilliputian'

See Magnolia × soulangeana ‘Lilliputian’.

'Limelight'

Flowers with or just before the new leaves (March–April in W Europe), tulip-shaped, greenish yellow; a small, sometimes multistemmed tree or large shrub raised by Phil Savage, MI, before 2002. The identity of the M. × soulangeana parent is unclear (Lobdell 2021; Magnolia Society International 2003). The habit of this cultivar, quite widely marketed in Europe, seems to divide opinion: ‘capricious growing’ (van den Berk Nurseries 2022); ‘has a strange low spreading habit’ (Williams 2022); ‘vigorous multistemed tree. One of the best new magnolias in the collection’ (Piet Vergeldt Boomkwekerij 2022).

The greenish tint to the flowers of Magnolia 'Limelight' is evident as the buds open (7th April 2020). Image Caerhays Estate.

Magnolia 'Limelight' (27th April 2015). Image Caerhays Estate.

Magnolia 'Limelight'. Image Caerhays Estate.

'Little Gem'

See Magnolia grandiflora ‘Little Gem’.

'Livingstone'

Flowers precocious, April in S England, cup-shaped, vivid reddish purple. An upright, pyramidal small tree raised before 2013 by Ian Baldick, New Zealand, and named for his Auckland garden (Magnolia Grove 2022).

Magnolia 'Livingstone', a richly coloured New Zealand hybrid (25th March 2019). Image Caerhays Estate.

Magnolia 'Livingstone' (25th March 2019). Image Caerhays Estate.

Magnolia 'Livingstone' (17th March 2020). Image Caerhays Estate.

'Lois'

Flowers precocious, over a 4–5 week period (from mid-April, S England), fragrant; tepals 9, primrose yellow, to 8 cm long. A medium tree much resembling ‘Elizabeth’ but with the yellow colour tending not to fade. A backcross from a sibling of ‘Elizabeth’ made by Lola Koerting, Brooklyn Botanic Garden, 1964; named for Lois Carswell, a trustee of the garden, 1998. Perhaps the best of the ‘Brooklyn Yellows’; Philippe de Spoelberch considers it among the best of all yellows (pers. comm. 2021).

Magnolia 'Lois' at Gresgarth Hall, Lancashire, early May 2022. Image John Grimshaw.

Magnolia 'Lois': much like the celebrated 'Elizabeth', but tending to retain its yellow better (6th May 2018). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

Magnolia 'Lois' (6th May 2018). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

Magnolia 'Lois' (4th May 2015). Image Philippe de Spoelberch.

Magnolia 'Lois' in flower at The Garden House, Devon, UK (27 April 2023). Image Jack Aldridge.

Magnolia 'Lois' stands out even against a grey sky at The Garden House, Devon, UK, where it has made a shapely specimen at the garden entrance (27 April 2023). Image Jack Aldridge.

'Lotus'

Flowers precocious, late March to April in S England, large, creamy white marked pink at the base, usually described as ‘lotus-shaped’. An upright, small to medium tree raised by Felix Jury, New Zealand, introduced 1988. Takes longer to settle to regular flowering than ‘Athene’ or ‘Milky Way’ which both share the same parentage (Jury 2017; Jury & Jury 2021).

Magnolia 'Lotus' (Tikorangi, New Zealand; 9th September 2014). Image Abbie Jury.

Magnolia 'Lotus' (Tikorangi, New Zealand). Image Abbie Jury.

Magnolia 'Lotus' (Tikorangi, New Zealand). Image Abbie Jury.

'Lu Shan'

Trees in Europe under this name have erect, precocious, pure white flowers and are attributed to Phil Savage, MI (Frank P Matthews 2022; Piet Vergeldt Boomkwekerij 2022). They are presumed to represent one of the many hybrid seedlings raised from “M. cylindrica” seed originating at Lu Shan Botanical Garden (see under M. cylindrica); Savage may not have intended the tag to apply to any specific seedling (Lobdell 2021).

Magnolia 'Lu Shan' as grown in Europe (21th April 2018). Image Caerhays Estate.

Magnolia 'Lu Shan' (31th March 2021). Image Caerhays Estate.

'Lv Xing'

Flowers precocious, vase-shaped with 6 inner tepals, sometimes opening flat, yellow-green to white with purple-red midvein grading into purple-red base; some reflowering through the summer. A shrub or very small tree 2–3 m in height, introduced before 2016 by Xi’an Botanical Garden, Shaanxi, China (Lobdell 2021; Magnolia Society International 2017; Burncoose Nurseries 2022). GREEN DIAMOND appears to be a Trade Designation for the same plant; it was also sold in Europe as ‘Sunrise’ against the raiser’s wishes, but that name had also been used earlier for a Dennis Ledvina hybrid (Lobdell 2021).

Magnolia 'Lv Xing' is sometimes sold as GREEN DIAMOND or mislabelled 'Sunrise' (10th April 2015). Image Caerhays Estate.

A flower of Magnolia 'Lv Xing' showing a distinct yellow-green tint (23rd March 2009). Image Caerhays Estate.

Magnolia 'Lv Xing' (10th April 2015). Image Caerhays Estate.

'Lydia'

See Magnolia obovata ‘Lydia’.