Magnolia ‘Sara Koe’

Magnolia 'Galaxy' x Magnolia campbellii subsp. mollicomata

Philippe de Spoelberch cultivated this plant from seed obtained from the seed list of the Magnolia Society International in 1991. It became a low branching and very floriferous tree with round habit (7.5 m wide and 5.5 m high). The large, upright flowers have a deep pink to purple colour and bloom from mid-April until early May, before the leaves appear. Jim Gardiner, curator at the time of the famous RHS Wisley garden in England, suggested the name ‘Sara Koe’ in honour of the English Magnolia enthousiast who sadly died in 1995 of PSP brain disorder. In England she is also commemorated through the Sara Koe PSP research centre and the yearly ‘PSP Magnolia Day’ on 8th April.