My Lilacs in Bloom
Are your lilacs blooming? My allee of lilac at my Bedford, New York farm is exploding with big, gorgeous, and fragrant flower clusters.
I love lilacs, and have enjoyed growing them for many years. In fact, the common lilac, Syringa vulgaris, has been part of the American landscape for centuries - lilacs planted in 1650 on Michigan’s Mackinac Island are some of the country's oldest known specimens. If you don't already have lilacs in your garden, I strongly encourage you to grow one, or two, or even three shrubs - they will give you years of beautiful blooms.
Enjoy these photos.
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- I planted this allee of lilac about 15-years ago and it has thrived ever since. It is located behind my chicken coops not far from my tennis court. Lilacs are low maintenance, easy to grow, and can reach from five to 20-feet tall or more depending on their variety.
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- The lilac, Syringa vulgaris, is a species of flowering plant in the olive family Oleaceae. Syringa is a genus of up to 25-cultivated species with more than one-thousand varieties.
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- Lilacs come in seven colors: violet, blue, lilac, pink, red, purple and white. The purple lilacs have the strongest scent compared to other colors.
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- The bold lilac colors look so pretty against the vibrant green foliage. Lilac leaves are simple, opposite, ovate, about two to four inches long, and usually shaped like elongated hearts.
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- Lilacs have pyramidal clusters of blossoms with both single and double varieties – all with the same glossy green leaves.
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- ‘Sensation’, first known in 1938, is unique for its bicolor deep-purple petals edged in white on eight to 12-foot-tall shrubs.
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- ‘Wedgwood Blue,’ as its name implies, has fragrant flowers in hues resembling blue Wedgwood on spreading shrubs that reach six-feet tall.
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- And ‘Adelaide Dunbar’ is a disease-resistant common lilac, with spikes of sweet-scented, double, purple flowers.
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- Lilacs were introduced into Europe at the end of the 16th century from Ottoman gardens and arrived in American colonies a century later. To this day, it remains a popular ornamental plant in gardens, parks and homes because of its attractive, sweet-smelling blooms.
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- And, lilacs were grown in America’s first botanical gardens – both George Washington and Thomas Jefferson grew them.
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- Although lilacs display flowers among the most delicate of the ornamentals, some newer hybrid varieties can survive winter temperatures of 60-degrees-below-zero Fahrenheit.
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- Lilacs grow best in full sun and moist, well-drained, humus-rich soil.
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- They benefit from regular watering at planting, during bloom, and heavy growth periods. Once established, however, they are fairly drought-tolerant. This is a lovely pure white lilac.
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- Most lilacs thrive in hardiness zones 3 through 7, in cooler climates with chilling periods. Lilacs are typically clump forming, producing new shoots from the base of the trunk, which can be used for propagating.
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- Last week, so many of the shrubs were full of giant blooms – the fragrance was intoxicating.
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- When selecting a location for lilacs, choose one that has good air circulation to reduce the likelihood of fungal diseases, such as powdery mildew. In addition, choose a spot that is large enough to accommodate the mature size of the plant.
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- Both sides of this allee are edged all the way around with straight, clean lines.
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- Lilacs appear from mid-spring to early summer just before many of the other summer flowers blossom. Young lilacs can take up to three-years to reach maturity and bear flowers – be patient.
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- By planting an assortment, bloom time will be staggered and can last for up to two-months. Lilacs should be pruned each year shortly after blooming has completed. At that time, remove spent flowers, damaged branches and old stems, but never prune after July 4th because at that point, the tree has already begun to set next year’s flower buds.
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- If enjoying them as cut flowers, cut the lilacs right at their peak, when color and scent are strongest, and place them in a vase as soon as possible. Here is an arrangement on the soapstone counter of my newly redone studio kitchen.
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- And here’s another arrangement in my Winter House servery. Lilacs – filled with color and fragrance – make a wonderful addition to any garden and any home.
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