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lilac restoration
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Posted by maureenbee Z5 (My Page) on Sat, May 23, 09 at 6:58
| Hi All...I've just bought a new to me/old house - woo hoo! The property is small and has great landscaping/gardening potential. Existing plants, shrubs, trees don't amount to too much, but I'm grateful for what is there.
One prize is an old lilac that wants restorative help. It's a tree lilac, about 8' tall. The circumference of the growth is about 6'. The entire ground area is covered in suckers. Poor thing has only three or four blooms formed at the moment. It gets adequate sun, and doesn't have anything encroaching on it.
Any suggestions on how to go about resuscitating the old lilac? I know they like lime, but when, and what else would be good for it? How much should I prune the old growth, and when? Should I discourage the suckers, and what percentage?
Lots of questions - thanks in advance!
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Follow-Up Postings:
RE: lilac restoration
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| In my experience, old lilacs age in different shapes. You say there are plenty of suckers, but are there many large old single twisty stems? The best way,IMO, is to take out several of these old stems/trunks each year. It only hurts for a few minutes! I put on wood ash during the winter and a good organic mix of 4 pt seed meal/1 pt rock phosphate/ 1/2 pt greensand or granite dust during the spring. |
RE: lilac restoration
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| I have restored old lilacs by taking out the old thick branches, only remove one third of the largest branches as close to the ground as possible after it flowers this year and then fertilize it heavily. Next year take another third of the old largest branches. By year three, you should have a nice amount of blooms and a good looking bush, much shorter than the old one but healthier. Final year take the last of the old thick branches and you should have a nice looking lilac. |
RE: lilac restoration
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| Thank you for the responses! There are numerous large branches, a few of which I will prune out as recommended each year. There is a carpet of <1/8" diameter - last year's? - suckers surrounding the base. My intuition says, get rid them. I'll leave a few decently sized, well situated suckers for new growth. Also, thanks for reminding me about wood ash as fertilizer. I've only ever used lime as fertilizer for lilacs. Will definitely consider your 'spring mix', marthacr. Off topic: I mowed yesterday & used the bagger; have a nice pile of clippings started. Also, discovered a sad peony tucked under the forsythia. I'll try and liberate it after it blooms. Found a nicely located patch of bittersweet, too. |
RE: lilac restoration
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Hello Maureen;
The bittersweet is not good news, it is really invasive and hard to contain. I spent years trying to remove it at my last home.
The peonies sounds wonderful. Good luck.
diene |
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