Browning of Magnolia grandiflora buds

The buds on my Magnolia grandiflora tend to turn brown before they even open, see photo. What is the cause of this and is there any way to correct this?

Thanks in advance, Larry

 

Frost is the obvious candidate.

 

ah, but the photo was taken in early July on Vancouver Island. I don't think frost was the issue.

 

Over-fertilizing may be?

 

I don't think that's it because I doubt that the lawn that it's planted in has been fertilized in years. In fact, I was wondering if that was the problem, a lack of some nutrient.

 

Another reason could be:
1. climate unsuitable for the cultivar. After all Magnolias are native to southeastern US
2. the plant is too young to produce flowers.

By the way, put organic mulch, like uncontaminated with chemicals grass clippings, compost, mix of the two, or similar, at the root area to supply food and shelter for the soil ecosystem, the soil organisms will produce all the necessary nutrients for your plant, in correct amounts.

 

The tree is probably about 20+ years old. Though given its age it isn't terribly big -- due to a lot of deer damage in the early years. And I don't believe it has consistently had this problem in the past. Given that last winter was a fairly mild one, I suspect it's a nutrient problem. So will try the mulch. Thanks for the advice.