Lilacs - Fragrance for Days!

I remember walking home from school through the alleyways in the springtime. Lilacs would be blooming everywhere, and I would take armfuls of them home to my momma, knowing they were her favorite flower. 

Their exquisite fragrance makes them my favorite, too! When their heavenly aroma wafts through my yard, I know that spring is finally here, and that summer is just around the corner!

A true delight in my garden is the Sensation Lilac. This lovely lilac has deep purple buds opening to a display showing each petal completely outlined in white. This two-tone coloration is so unexpected! And its lovely lilac scent is so delightful. This shrub is always a favorite of everyone who sees it!

Growing up in the upper Midwest, I remember lilacs being a staple of many home landscapes. Gracing farmhouses and urban homes alike, these shrubs are long-lived in the landscape and require very little maintenance. With many dwarf varieties available, lilacs can fit into any home landscape. Cascading over rock walls, or planted en masse to form a hedgerow, enjoying these fragrant blooms is a delight in the springtime. 

A visit to the Madison Arboretum and their expansive lilac plantings is all it takes to fall in love with these beauties. The Longenecker Horticultural Gardens offer a dazzling springtime display with so many varieties, and so many scents! I dive into the blossoms head first, absorbing their heavenly aroma. I really can't get enough of their heady perfume.

Swallowtail butterflies are so attracted to my Sensation lilacs. One year I had a visitor that stuck around for a little photo shoot. Constantly flitting around from blossom to blossom, I delighted with watching this beautiful butterfly on my bushes. 

Lilacs are pretty much care-free as far as plant maintenance. You will only need to remove the spent flower clusters once they're done blooming, and trim out any dead branches. These multi-stemmed, deciduous shrubs spread through shoots sent out from their root systems, expanding some plants into large clusters.

Botanical name: Syringa vulgaris

Common name: Common Lilac

Family: Oleaceae -- The Olive family

Interesting fact: The botanical name of lilac, Syringa (suh-RIN-gah), is from the Greek word syrinx, meaning tube. The flower clusters are made up of many little individuals flowers, each with a tubular center.

Lilacs grow best in full sun. Always consider the mature size of the plant when choosing a planting site. 

Pruning: Lilacs produce flowers on last year's wood. Pruning too late in the season will remove next year's flowers. Don't do it!

*Pro tip: For very large, overgrown clusters of lilacs that appear to be diminishing in the number of blossoms they produce, a good rule for pruning is to remove the oldest canes over a 3-year period, to gradually allow the plant to recover and grow new shoots. 

Share your love of lilacs in the comments. Any questions about growing lilacs? Let me know. 

Happy gardening, everyone! 💜