Wonderful! Lilacs are some of my favorites!

I love them, too. Also the species lilacs, the Persian, Chinese, Korean, and the fern-leaved lanciniata.

Thank you, Melissa, for bringing back wonderful childhood memories in Austria where I remember just the common white and purple varieties. The smell, however, is unforgettable, even after these many years.

It's interesting to hear that they do well for you in your hot summers. I keep thinking that only a few lilacs would be good in our hot summers such as Miss Kim. I think Miss Kim is the one I have. I'd like to try some others in bluer or purpler tones if they could be happy here. My one lilac plant seems very tough and drought tolerant. It is blooming right now .

Melissa, I grew up with lilacs in Ohio. Almost everyone had at least one. I remember the white one in the front yard and the purple one in the back yard. In bad springs they were only green bushes but in good springs they were glorious. In really good years they were beyond magnificent and the fragrance would waft. It was pure pleasure to walk down certain streets in the small towns near us. Except for California, lilacs have followed me wherever we lived, but they don't do too well here. Years ago I ordered a variegated lilac from a now-defunct nursery in Ohio. The blooms are nice enough- lilac/mauve with the necessary lilac fragrance but the shrub, when just leafing out, is a brilliant chartreuse yellow. It's as if it was lit from within. It makes growing this one worthwhile since it happens when everything is just waking up. I wish I could share it but most people here aren't interested.

Kes, you could share it with me! Ha! Lilacs have also followed me as well, although I only grow one poor specimen that languishes in the shade growing like a tree as it reaches for sun. As a child I remember going with my mom to collect the lilacs that grew wild in what were probably old homesteads and also the magnificent specimen sprawling in front of my grammy's old place. She always knew the best place to find such treasures. Nothing is as evocative as that fragrance. My mom reveled in it her last spring and as fate would have it they were still in bloom where she was buried and I plucked one flower for each of her children from a bush nearby to place in her grave. I don't know why I am writing this personal story only those who were there know. I'll erase it if it's inappropriate. As much as I love roses, the fragrance of lilacs can bring me to tears with nostalgia.

Where climate is suitable common lilacs of sufficient size can serve as hosts for large flowered clematis varieties, in order to get summer interest from the spaces the shrubs occupy.

What brilliant idea!

Lilacs are beautiful in the landscape. I like the fragrance, somewhat strong for indoors, but lovely outside.

The largest lilac collection in the US is in Highland Park, in Rochester, NY, near Lake Ontario. Lilacs were planted beginning in the 1890s.

Highland Park has a festival every year. I visited there many years ago, and it was amazing. There are hundreds of lilacs representing the full spectrum of colors, from the palest to the darkest shades.

Your post brings back many fond memories!

Wow! Thanks for the reminder; we have a huge lilac area in one of our parks. I wish I knew how to propagate them.

Sounds beautiful, Krista. I propagated one from a cutting. Took current year's growth after it bloomed, removed all but top two leaves, scraped lightly through the bark at the base of the cutting for about 1/2" on two sides of the cutting. Dipped in rooting hormone powder and stuck it in sand to about 1/2 to 3/4 of its length. Put in dappled light or bright shade and keep moist. No need to add humidity here.

I propagate most plants that way.

erasmus, was this play sand or coarse? I'm going to try this. It can't be worse than rooting roses. LOL!

I didn't expect much response to this post and was surprised: clearly a lot of people love lilacs. About climate. Our winters aren't cold, but they're steadily chilly, with weeks of temperatures in the thirties. The lilacs have never failed to bloom, even in our run of mild winters in recent years, including one or two years when temperatures never went below the high twenties. It's the chill hours that count, as is true for many other temperate climate plants that grow here. Summers are hot, but humidity is low, which means that nights are relatively cool, and this appears to be important for whether lilacs, and many other plants of European or Mediterranean origin, thrive or not. They're definitely not plants for the deep South, for example, but do well in the Pacific Northwest.

It was a visit to the lilac festival at the Hulda Klager Lilac Gardens in Woodland, Washington that did me in. That was back in 1995, and I've never gotten over it. More lilacs! more! more!

I've never seriously tried to root lilacs from cuttings, having heard it's hard (brava, Erasmus!), Lilacs, the S. vulgaris cultivars we're mostly talking about here, sucker out from the base, and these suckers come away easily with a bit of root and make new plants. I've propagated quite a few this way.

Vaporvac, if you want a start and we can figure out how to get one to you, you are more than welcome. I just dug out some suckers yesterday and think some more should be removed. I am happy to share with any and all.

I buy play sand in bags and the texture varies. I like a medium texture...not fine, but not too coarse. Lilacs seem easy to root or I should say the one variety I have seems easy to root. Suckers would be quicker. Kes in TN, what varieties do well in E TN? I'd like a blue one though I've been out of room for awhile.

Bart, every early Winter I plan to learn how to transfer photos and
post them and every late Winter I find that I have not. By Spring things
are popping out all over in the garden and life gets very busy. This
year extended family life has been busy too (good things) a wedding,
travel and a possible adoption. And so it goes. Be assured posting is
somewhere on the "to do" list sliding up and down with the currents of
life.

I apologize for placing this here Melissa but Houzz will not allow me to submit a post on "I Had So Much Fun" nor will it allow me to initiate a post. More adventures in the fun house known as Houzz.

Cath

Hi Kes! That's a very gracious offer! I accept! ; ) I'm trying to send you apm, but you don't appear to have your messaging turned on.

Lilacs is the most common hedging in the north and south of Sweden. Perhaps in the south as well but I wouldn't know about that. There were no boundaries between our property and our neighbors to the south so we followed local traditions and planted lilacs on three sides, most from suckers from two existing thickets, some bought. All common lilacs, purple and white. When they flower in early June we know that school is over and summer is here. I remember many class rooms with lilacs on the teacher's desk on the last day of term. In the garden the smell is almost overpowering, especially in one corner where the honeysuckle is competing for attention. We have only one named variety, Beauty of Moscow with pink buds.

Where are all the photos, pleeese!

Daisy

I grow Lilac Blue Skies....a nice fragrant one for the south.

patty

That's fine, Cath; I'm sorry you have to jump through such hoops to communicate on H.!

Lovely thread, Melissa. I wish that I could grow a lilac here. I just don’t get enough chill. They’re sold in great big bunches about this time of year as cut flowers, and the scent is intoxicating.

Vap, I’m glad your getting more lilacs from Kes. They say scent stirs the memory more than any of our senses. It does for me. Thank you for sharing about your mom. Not inappropriate at all. I’m glad she got to enjoy their heady scent her last spring. It seems extra special that they only bloom once a year, and that’s when you get to breathe in her much loved lilac fragrance again. Lisa

Lisa, you may be able to grow the Descanso Hybrids (Angel White, California Rose, Lavender Lady) which were developed by Dr. Walter Lammerts and sold through Descanso Distributors in the middle of the last century. Ralph Moore's Blue Skies is another very low chill requiring lilac suited for many California climates.

The only lilac photo I have is of Beauty of Moscow, a very popular variety over here. I grow it as a specimen plant away from the more common lilacs.

Mariannese, your photo is superb. The lilac has such delicate colouring. I love it.

Daisy

Melissa, thank you for giving an often overlooked and under appreciated shrub some attention. Lilacs get taken for granted because they don't require much from us but they bring out the sentimentality in anyone who grew up with them. Their blooming marks time and their scent stirs memories.

I grew up in So Calif. and never saw a lilac except as a cut flower until we visited a lilac farm in the high desert, where there is a small pocket of ideal conditions. Visitors were allowed to walk through the lilac fields on the rolling hills. Quite a sight. I've never forgotten it.

Fast forward many years and now my nearest town is Spokane, WA, nicknamed The Lilac City. There is a lilac named after the town. There is a Lilac Queen, and springtime events are called Lilac Festival, Lilac Parade, Lilac this or Lilac that. They grow like weeds here, but unlike weeds, the lilacs are loved. In the older sections of Spokane and out in the country, there are lilacs that cover the sides of houses.

I have purple, white, pink and blue lilacs around one end of the rose garden that are just starting to leaf out. I don't fertilize or prune or fuss over them. They just do their thing and they make my heart beat a little faster every spring. The peonies follow, then the roses. Aww, the roses.

Mariannese, what an incredible beauty! I’ve heard of this lilac, and seen photos, but none as lovely as yours. It’s very beautiful, and words don’t do it justice.

Kim, where might I find such a lilac? Are any of them kind of on the small side? I actually purchased a lilac many years ago in another house. The thing grew like mad, but never bloomed. It was another case of a place selling something thing totally unsuitable for the climate. I remember being terribly disappointed. I felt cheated after I did some research on why it wouldn’t bloom. Lol! I would love a smallish, low chill lilac, that’s for sure! Lisa

Here is one of my lilacs, Maiden’s Blush, blooming around Mother’s Day last year. All of mine are very young yet, surprisingly there were no lilacs in my yard. They are practically a requirement for Victorian era homes in Minnesota! Lilacs are everywhere in my town and I adore them. Hopefully I can share some pictures of mine when they bloom later this spring!!

Lisa, there are a few wonderful lilac nurseries, some of them carry the more heat tolerant varieties. I got mine from Select Plus, which is a family owned and operated lilac nurseries that does some hybridizing too.

Not as many lilac nurseries appear to be operational as was once the case -- even a few years ago, I fear. House flippers, such as we have had in recent decades, are not interested in investing in lilacs, or gardens in general, I guess.

Vesfl, seeing your picture reminds me of how lovely the park is. My husband and I need to return to Rochester for a vacation! It's a lovely area. I hadn't realized how many shades of lilac shrub are possible, until I visited the park, amazingly beautiful. The variations of red and blue tones were fascinating.

I got my first starter lilac to try. I figure if I get enough chill for the once bloomers, I should have enough for them too. Kes if you have more to share of your variegated variety I would love to try it. I am very excited for mine, I ordered "monge". I hope it likes it here.

Krista, it is very beautiful there for sure. I also look forward to seeing one of their lush cherry trees that is the most enchanting I've ever seen. It's difficult to say when lilacs will bloom this season because of the never-ending winter, but the festival is scheduled for May 11-20 so I assume this would still be their peak time. Hope you and your husband make it there this year!

I agree with Monarda about the sad decline in specialized lilac nurseries... here in WNY most nurseries offer the same 3-4 varieties of syringa vulgaris every year, most commonly 'President Lincoln', 'Charles Joly', a lovely bicolor 'Sensation', and one of the varieties with 'Moscow' in its name, it may well be the one that, as we learn from Marianne, is also popular in Sweden. They are all beautiful but such a small selection for, sadly, not many people are interested any more.

I hope the interest will surge one day as it did with hydrangeas. For years, hydrangeas were relegated to the bottom of the list and dismissed as too old fashioned or too big or too familiar to plant in modern gardens. Now they're one of the most popular and most hybridized shrubs aside from roses. There are new varieties every year, suitable for every size garden. Lilacs may also have their day again.

flowersaremusic, I agree with your analysis, and hope lilacs make it back again! Their cold hardiness is a big point in their favor, I believe. I'm quite envious when I read of folks in the U.S. being able to get varieties like 'Monge' and 'Blue Skies'. There aren't too many varieties in circulation in Italy as far as I can tell. There's a major nursery in Denmark, but at this point I'm afraid I'd have to win the lottery to make an order (better start buying tickets).

I couldn't help jumping in on this thread - love, love, love lilacs. And it's a reminder to myself to move the young shrubs that are just in too much shade at the moment to bloom as gloriously as I know they can. So far I have 4 varieties in my small village yard, but I'd have to go out and look at the tags to remember their names. I do know that one is Beauty of Moscow. Another is an unnamed deep dark purple that I started with a cutting from a friend's bush. I guess I didn't know that lilacs were hard to start from cuttings; I just took my slip and stuck it in the garden and it rooted, LOL. Guess I was lucky!

And if anyone is looking for a destination to enjoy lilacs, you can't go wrong with a visit to Mackinac Island in northern Michigan. Something about the micro-climate of the island allows the lilacs there to grow to immense size and age. They claim over 400 varieties and they're planted everywhere. In bloom season, it is fabulous!

Link to more info on the lilacs of Mackinac Island

I also couldn't help but add to this thread as well. I live in an area where lilacs are common and to be honest an easily dismissed plant. People enjoy them, but they are relatively overlooked. I'm more apt to see great clumps of them on the country roads, bordering the edges of farm yards. Too be honest I think part of the problem of them not being as fashionable in newer yards is mostly a size issue and their very short bloom time. But I recently saw an article about reblooming lilacs. Now that might get people on board again! But I agree with others here about how easy they are to grow and care for. These were planted by the previous owners. But we've enjoyed them the past few years!

For those who would like to try a smaller lilac in their yard, check out: Scent and Sensibility; Prairie Petite. Both of these are supposed to top off at 3’, which is sized perfectly for even a small yard or a big pot on the patio. Scent and Sensibility is a pink and Prairie Petite is a purple.

Vaporvac, I don't mean to be rude. I sent an email through houzz but don't know if you got it. Also, Alana, I've enabled my messaging feature on houzz so in theory you can message me if you like. Houzz and I have problems communicating. I am happy to spread around this lilac. It really is worth growing, even though it will never be at its best here. I think that acidic, infertile soil combined with hot humid summers and shorter chill periods don't do much for lilacs.

Which reminds me- Erasmus, I wish I knew what lilac would grow well for me. No one on our road does well with lilacs, regardless of varieties, although I think most are old-fashioned passaround plants.. There were several homeowners who tried over the years but we are now down to my neighbor and me and most of the time ours look pretty rough. I don't blame the people who gave up on them and tore them out.

Mariannese, vesfl and Halloblondie, I can only dream of having lilacs like yours. I have always wanted Beauty of Moscow, Mariannese. I'm so glad you posted a photo of yours.

Looking through my picture folders, I remember that we had two lilacs on the property many years ago. They did not survive, one from lack of sun, and the other did not survive when the village replaced a utility pole. Both shrubs could have been 50- 100 years old.

I need to add lilac to my garden again!

These pics are of the larger shrub.

All these gorgeous photos are making me anxious for mine to bloom, but that won't be for 2 or 3 more weeks. I can almost smell that heady perfume. I will post pics if this thread is still going strong. Not sure what I have, but know there is President Lincoln, Beauty of Moscow, President Grevy, and a couple of Miss Kim that bloom after the standard size ones.

Krista, that's a terrible loss! The city should replace the one they were responsible for dying. The best place to find them here is at garden shows and garden club sales, but even Costco always has some good named varieties.

The lilacs are just starting at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. I haven't been to see them, but my husband has. In a few days I will go to see them also.
I suppose if I really wanted to see lilacs I would have to arrange a trip to Rochester, NY where they still may have some of the ones that Leonie Bell and Helen Van Pelt Wilson wrote about years ago in their book, The Fragrant Year.
I always think of Leonie Bell's drawing of individual lilac blooms:

Bell and Wilson recommended various early lilacs for fragrance, among them 'Claude Bernard' (now unobtainable and even then rare), 'Turgot' and 'Charles Nodine'. None of them appear to be in commerce nowadays and were rare even then. They can get quite huge.

Of the classic French ones hybridized by Lemoine, they had this to say:

And then the species, of which I have the fern-leaved S. laciniata (now sometimes called Syringa proto laciniata [afghanica]), which I bought based on their enticing (somewhat hyperbolic?) description. Mine is not as fragrant as promised, but it is beautiful, small growing, and doesn't get mildew in summer. They describe it as having a sweet fragrance like wisteria or daphne -- whatever. I have moved mine twice because it got too big. I don't know if it will bloom this year. Last year frost got the buds, both of mine and of the specimen at BBG.. This year we shall see. All the words on this page are about laciniata; (S. pubescens was discussed on the previous page).

Finally, I have one of an early lilac at BBG from two days ago. Sorry it is kind of blurry, but I'm glad he took it since it shows the manner of growth.

Monarda, thank you for sharing all this. Lemoine was a genius. I've just now realized that in the same bed where I planted his 'Président Grévy' lilac, last year I also added that ever-popular peony 'Sarah Bernhardt', another one of his creations. Unfortunately I don't think he ever hybridized roses.

I bought a blue " Firmament" lilac plant from dogwooderitternet on ebay. It is a starter plant for about $6. He sells several lilacs, lots of other shrubs and clematis. Have heard good things about him and was happy with the clematis plants he sent.

Our lilac season is just about over. It was brief this year: the start of bloom coincided with the beginning of three weeks of unseasonally warm dry weather. Well, the rain came, too late to save the lilac flowering, but for a couple of weeks they were magnificent. And of course now we have the roses.

I have the S. laciniata, or whatever it's called, and agree it's a lovely shrub, and one I wish I had more of. The dang thing doesn't sucker. My heart doesn't really recognize it as a lilac, a classification it reserves for S. vulgaris cultivars. Lemoine was a genius. I want more lilacs. All you folks whose lilacs are in bloom now, enjoy!

I, too, have S. lacinata. It is relatively small, kept to 6-8' here. The interesting thing about its scent is that the dried flowers retain the scent.

Cath