lilac advice please?

13 years ago

I have positive childhood memories of our neighbors lilac bushes. They were huge and smelled amazing! I just love the smell of lilacs ;)

Now that I have my own home and yard, I would love to have lilac bushes of my own. I know that they don't hold much seasonal interest other than spring, but their smell is amazing.

I am hoping for some advice on the best variety to choose for our conditions. We are in the chicago area/zone 5. The spot available is between our home and fence. It is a low area so moist, not to mention it is right near our downspout. I wouldn't say it is swampy, but its definately wetter than other spots in our yard. It gets good sun for most of the day but since it is next to the house it does get some shade. The space we have to work with is a rectangle about 10 feet wide. Height is not that big of an issue, but I would like it to be as tall as our fence eventually which is 6ft. Fragrance and flowering is important as I definately want the pretty fragrant flowers.

Is there a lilac variety that will work well in our location? thanks in advance!

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Comments (3)

duluthinbloomz4
13 years ago
Syringa Vulgaris - the common old French lilac is probably what you remember from your childhood in the Midwest. Fragrance is intoxicating. The more sun the better the bloom.

I'm not familiar with all the cultivars of S.Vulgaris available today as I only have a long hedge of the familiar purple. Elsewhere on the property I have a mix of whites and burgundies and purples - all the lilacs were planted @1900; all prolific bloomers and all extremely fragrant.
turtlecdl
13 years ago
Better Homes/Gardens recently (last 3 months) did some articles on lilacs. One issue had a three page Q&A and then another discussed a reblooming lilac. I hope this is accurate and helpful.
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professorroush
13 years ago
There are, as others said, lots of varieties of Syringa vulgaris available. The rebloomers I've seen so far don't rebloom very well (in Kansas) and have smaller blooms so I'd stay with the older varieties. Yankee Doodle is a nice purple, Wonderblue is about as good a blue as you can get, and you really can't beat "Sensation", a purple/white picotee. The latter is usually readily available at local stores.

ProfessorRoush (www.kansasgardenmusings.blogspot.com)