Listed as "critically endangered," there were only a few dozen found left of these when the variety was first discovered in China in 1931 according to MEG McCONAHEY writing in THE PRESS DEMOCRAT.
^Del Tredici, Peter; Spongberg, Stephen A. (1989). "A New Magnolia Blooms in Boston"(PDF). Arnoldia. 49 (2): 25–27 – via Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University.