Magnolia (Michelia) Devos Kosar x kewensis Fairy Cream

Magnolia 'Fairy Cream', also known as Michelia, is a beautiful evergreen bush that combines many qualities. This recent variety is both floriferous and fragrant, but above all it is hardy. 'Fairy Cream' blooms from late winter to the beginning of summer, abundantly. Its large, sublime flowers, in a lovely shade of cream, exude a delicious scent reminiscent of pear or banana. The bush is also endowed with good health, shown by its abundant glossy foliage and dense habit, which remains impeccable throughout the year. Reserve a prime location for this Michelia, close to the house or a pathway, to fully enjoy its wonderful flowers.

Magnolia 'Fairy Cream' belongs to the magnolia family, and shares with other magnolias shiny green foliage and large cup-shaped flowers. This variety is part of a series of complex hybrids, derived from the Magnolia x kewensis (M. kobus X M. salicifolia) and the M. 'Kosar Devos' (Magnolia quinquepeta x M. stellata), plants that have passed on to it hardiness, evergreen foliage, floribundance, and fragrance. 

The 'Fairy Cream' variety stands out for its vigour, quick flowering on young plants, increased hardiness, and excellent retention of its foliage, which remains abundant even after flowering. It is a well branched bush with a rounded habit, reaching a height of 3m (10ft) and a width of 2.5m (8ft) at maturity when grown in the ground, maintaining more modest proportions in pots. Starting from autumn, large velvet brown buds appear along its branches, located at the axil of each leaf. From March to June, the buds open into beautiful magnolia flowers, at least 10cm (4in) wide, composed of creamy white, waxy-textured petals, with a prominent cluster of stamens surrounding a pale yellow, grainy club-shaped pistil at their centre. The foliage is tough, medium green and glossy, composed of entire, ovate leaves, 6 to 8cm (2 to 3in) long, with a lighter, velvety underside. 

Plant the Michelia 'Fairy Cream' to showcase it: in isolation, near a pathway to enjoy its fragrance, or even in a large container on the terrace for winter storage. It will be marvellous as a standalone plant in a short grass meadow, in a container on the terrace, but also mixed in a flower bed or in a hedge with other small magnolias ('George Henry Kern', 'Blue Opal'), sweet viburnums (Viburnum odoratissimum), Japanese privets (Ligustrum japonicum), and even in a trimmed hedge. It can serve as a screen and a backdrop for small woodland plants. It will provide excellent perches for songbirds, further enhancing its exotic charm.