Lilacs – Old is new again By Gerald Filipski
Bloomerang purple lilac (Syringa x purple ‘Penda’). A
favourite memory of mine is of a family drive out to St. Paul, Alberta to see my
grandparent’s farm. Standing on the property I was struck by the size of a purple lilac bush that was in full bloom. It was some 60 years since it was planted and it was 25 feet tall and still growing strong amongst the weeds and grasses. It struck me then that lilacs are true prairie pioneers. Somehow, along the way 'lilac'
became a banned word in many landscape design circles. I recall the instructor in a landscape design course I was taking many years ago telling us that if we even thought about using a lilac in a design assignment he would fail us. Thankfully, breeders never gave up on this plant. Today there are many lilacs that make great
14 • Early Spring 2016
additions to the home landscape. New varieties are non-suckering and with several dwarf varieties available, there really is a lilac for every garden. They are
among
the hardiest landscape plants and offer some of the most spectacular blooms. What has made lilacs so endear-
ing to gardeners for so many years? Perhaps it’s that the heady fragrance of a lilac is an announce- ment that spring has arrived. They are very easy to grow, are relatively low maintenance and the combi- nation of colour and fragrance are so very welcome after a long winter. h Gerald Filipski is a member of
the Garden Writers Association of America. Gerald’s column appears weekly in the Edmonton Journal and he is the author of Just Ask Jerry.
Tips for keeping your lilac happy:
• Grow in full sun for the best flowering results.
• Prune off the spent flowers after bloom- ing. This will encourage more blooms the following year. Since lilacs bloom on the previous year’s wood, prune only immedi- ately after they bloom and at no other time.
• Lilacs do not need a lot of fertilizer. In fact, too much nitrogen can promote leaf growth at the expense of blooms. If the soil is poor fertilize in the spring with a fertil- izer, such as 5-10-5, to encourage bloom.
• Once established they are relatively drought tolerant.
• Regularly prune out old stems so the shrub is always producing new wood to bloom on.
• Plant them near a window or patio and take time to enjoy the fragrance!
localgardener.net
Photo courtesy of Proven Winners.
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