GARDEN IDEAS
Growing Lilac
If you have the space, growing lilac in your garden is both...
Practical - Create a hedge or privacy border as well as shade for those hot summer days, and
Stunning to look at. Lilac forms clusters of flowers into huge spectacular blooms.
Growing Lilac is simple - it's one of the most hardy plants you can grow - and only needs a few basic essentials to ensure long growth and beautiful blooms. The colours available in hybrid varieties are wonderful and you may even find variegated types. Some hybrid varieties are less aromatic though.
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Wild lilac will provide the strongest scent but less colour changes.
This lovely lilac is ready to go from Thompson & Morgan (UK)
Lilac 'Charles Joly'
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Densely packed clusters of deep purple, double flowers
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Ideal for adding colour and fragrance to your garden
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Perfect for cottage gardens, scented planting schemes and wildlife areas
Make sure you are growing lilac in a sunny spot - this will ensure lots of flowers - and lots of butterfly visits. Too much shade will definitely reduce flower production.
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Lilac doesn't like wet feet and will not grow in water-logged soil. The soil must be well-drained.
Richness of soil is not THAT important, as long as it is well-drained. Lilac is part of the Olive family ( well-known for its high fruiting production in the poorest of soils ) and, although it will benefit from a general fertilizer in the spring, it doesn't matter if you forget!
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Mulch around the shrubs, but not too thickly as the growing lilac will propagate by sending up suckers from the main plant.
Dig gently round the root ball to remove any suckers that may come up for replanting. Cut from the mother plant with a sharp knife and re-cover the exposed roots. Plant out the new plants, water and watch them grow!
Pruning:
Pruning isn't essential but some varieties can grow up to 15 feet (5m). A certain amount of cultivation may be in order in a limited space! Prune in early spring or late summer but NEVER in the growing season.
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Pruning lilac will stop the production of flowers and pruning should therefore be done economically so as not to miss out on next year's flowering season. After pruning, the bush will produce many new branches and lots of foliage.
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Lilac growers can be of two minds when it comes to pruning and probably the best advice would be to prune lightly every other year, unless the tree looks like it needs more or it develops any diseased parts.
Don't prune in the growing season though.
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Because lilac flowers on old wood, sometimes a new plant won't flower for a number of years, until the branch is mature enough to produce blooms.
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Lilac has been grown in Europe and America for hundreds of years, and traditional lilac growers would put ash from their fireplace or stove around the plant to ensure masses of blooms.
Growing lilac is an excellent project for beginner gardeners. Use the shrub as hedging and prune to shape in early spring or late autumn. Let it grow fairly thick and you may even get birds nesting - lilac attracts butterflies and butterflies will attract insect-eating garden birds. A whole wildlife project in one plant!
And is you're really short of space, this gorgeous pink dwarf variety will enhance your patio!