Growing Dwarf Lilacs - Learn About Common Dwarf Lilac Varieties

How big does a dwarf lilac bush get?

Regular lilacs can grow 6 to 15 feet (1.8-4.5 m.) in height but the dwarf lilac varieties are only 4 to 5 feet (1.2-1.5 m.) and can easily fit into small gardens or even containers.

How do you take care of a dwarf lilac bush?

Dwarf Korean Lilac Care Requirements: Full sun (minimum 6 hours per day), keep soil on the medium to dry side, low maintenance, pruning is optional. If deadheading prune after first bloom to encourage more blooms. Pruning at the end of the blooming season (April to May) supports more blossoms in the coming year.

What grows well with dwarf lilacs?

Herbaceous peonies and tree peonies (Paeonia) are wonderful companions to lilacs. They are compatible in color, fragrance and form, and make each other look better. Plant peonies at your lilac' foot to hide its poorly clad legs and savor the beauty and pervasive perfume they lavish on those who passes-by.

Which variety of lilac is the most fragrant?

The lilac usually considered the most fragrant is a Chinese native—S. pubescens. It has small, white flowers tinged with purple. The fragrance is sweet and spicy, very different from the traditional “lilac” scent.

Are coffee grounds good for lilacs?

Using Fresh Coffee Grounds

Grow lilacs in fertile, humus-rich, well-drained, neutral to alkaline soil (at a pH near 7.0). If your soil is in poor condition, add compost to enrich.

Can you keep a lilac tree small?

An older lilac may stop blooming if neighboring trees have grown up to cast shade on it. Lilacs need regular renewal pruning to thin them out and control their size. ... Since common lilac is a big shrub or a small tree, growing 8 to 20 feet tall and almost as wide, it can simply be too much shrub for smaller yards.

Is Epsom salt good for lilacs?

Lastly, lilacs do not like overly acidic soil. One trick to encouraging them to bloom is fertilizing them with Epsom salts during the dormant period. ... Epsom salts are a good natural fertilizer for lilacs and tomatoes. Add about one cup of Epsom salts to the soil around the drip line of the plant.

When should I prune my dwarf lilac?

Pruning lilacs soon after flowering has finished removes unsightly spent blooms. Shortly after bloom is also the best time to prune the lilac for shaping and rejuvenation, as the lilac begins to produce buds for the next year's flowers not long after blooming has finished in spring.

Is there a difference between a lilac tree and a lilac bush?

To clear up any confusion, there is no difference between a lilac bush and a lilac tree, they are the same plant just called by different names.

How close to the house can I plant a lilac?

Lilac roots generally spread one and one-half times the width of the shrub. A distance of 12 feet (4 m.) from the foundation is generally enough to prevent foundation damage.

Which lilac blooms the longest?

Common Lilac is the longest blooming species, lasting for a month depending on cultivar and region. Typically blooming in late spring, it offers the largest flowers with the best fragrance.

Where is the best place to plant a lilac bush?

The ideal spot to plant lilacs is in an area with full sun (at least 6 to 8 hours per day)—give them too much shade and they may not bloom. Lilacs also like slightly alkaline, moist, well-drained soil.

Why are lilacs so expensive?

Most of the supply comes from Holland, where growers have been perfecting the art of forcing lilacs out of season for 150 years. The labor-intensive forcing system and the cost of shipping the heavy woody stems makes Dutch lilacs pricey.

What is the darkest lilac?

POCOHONTAS The darkest purple lilac and very early.

Why do my lilacs not smell?

When no smell from lilac bushes is apparent, it is usually due to one of two things—non-aromatic species or air temperature. Generally, common lilac (Syringa vulgaris), also known as old-fashioned lilac, possesses the strongest and pleasing aroma of all lilac species.

Are eggshells good for lilacs?

Eggshells can be added to the soil anytime. Pulverize them and sprinkle them around your lilac bushes, gently turning them into the top few inches of your soil. Take care not to damage any roots and water thoroughly to help leech the eggshells into the soil.

Are banana peels good for lilacs?

Organic Lilac Food

Grass clippings and coffee grounds are a good source of nitrogen, but use them sparingly in compost. Banana peels offer potassium to the soil.

How do you rejuvenate a lilac bush?

One way to renew a large, overgrown lilac is to cut the entire plant back to within 6 to 8 inches of the ground in late winter (March or early April). This severe pruning will induce a large number of shoots to develop during the growing season.

What is the lifespan of a lilac bush?

1. Lilacs live a long time. Some lilacs shrub varieties can live 200 years, so think about this when you plant them and put them in a place where they aren't likely to be disturbed. Two of the most fragrant are 'Miss Kim' and plain old Syringa vulgaris, the common lilac.

Can you shape a lilac bush?

Trimming lilacs is best accomplished using clippers. Remove spent blooms all the way to the stems to prevent seeding and encourage more blooms later on. Cut back about a third of the branches. Cut away shoots growing near the ground that may be sprouting from the main trunk.

Should you Deadhead lilacs?

You must deadhead the lilacs soon after they finish blooming so you don't accidentally remove the new buds and ruin next year's flower cycle. Cut off the old dead flowers as soon as they begin to turn brown and wither.