It's hard to describe the joy of walking by a yard full of lilac blossoms and a tidal wave of sweet perfume hits you so hard that you take the long way home just to smell it again.
Bring Hummingbirds Right To Your Window!
Check PriceMost gardeners buy any lilac variety at their local garden center. However, the smart homeowner knows that to create a show-stopping display they need to be strategic with their choices. The difference between a 'nice' lilac bush and one that becomes a spring destination for the neighborhood is selecting varieties that bloom at different times and have different heights as well as the most powerful fragrance.
Save this article for later so you don't lose it. Enter your email and I'll send it to you now—plus you'll get my favorite backyard birding tips delivered to your inbox.
Spaeth Ludwig: The Grand Finish
The wonderful burgundy-purple color flower of Ludwig Spaeth, blooming later than almost all other lilacs. Its clusters of richly wine-colored flowers are so powerfully sweet they can perfume an entire yard. Because it blooms late, it will extend your lilac display to late May when most other lilacs are finished.
Classic Elegance, Professor Robert B. Clark
When you picture the ideal front yard garden, you might imagine white clusters of lilacs. With Professor Robert B. Clark, you get plenty of them. This variety of lilac emits large, densely packed flower clusters that practically shine in the evening. The striking white flowers create beautiful contrasts with the darker purple varieties and, fitting with their fragrance, offer one of the lilac family’s strongest scents.
Tom Taylor: The Powerhouse in Purple
Tom Taylor dazzles with stunning purple-pink blooms that no one can miss! This vigorous grower has flower clusters that can grow up to 12 inches long! With its bright color and strong growth habit, this is an ideal spring garden design focal point or backdrop plant!
Spokane: Delicate Beauty
Simple yet breathtaking gardens integrate Spokane perfectly. It's soft lilac-pink flowers exude a delicate, almost ethereal quality, providing an unobtrusive burst of color amidst spring’s more exuberant flower displays. Its smaller, more refined flower clusters and will make a lovely addition to cottage garden style collections or offer an understated, yet elegant, addition to more formal landscape schemes.
Get our free Hummingbird Attraction Guide! Plus, we'll send you our best tips for attracting more birds to your yard.
Snow Shower: Pure Fragrance
The Snow Shower lilac has pure white flowering clusters which are visually stunning. However, the Snow Shower lilac gives lilacs a good name because of its amazing, potent, sweet perfume. The scent permeates the air and can be detected from 50 feet away. The Snow Shower lilac blooms in the middle of the blooming season and the dark green leaves create a lovely contrast.
Firmament: The Color Changer
The Firmament offers something very unique in that its flowers will change from a pale lavender-blue and shift to a lighter and softer tone as they mature. The unique hues of the flowers provide a great talking point in the garden that is slightly different from the traditional purple lilacs. It creates a nearly magical effect in the garden, as the blue blooms will change throughout the flowering period, and makes a perfect choice for a gardener who wants something a bit different.
Best Tips to Plant for the Biggest Effect
Lilacs that have the most blooms and the lilacs that struggle belong and become neighborhood landmarks thrive because of three important reasons. First, full sun exposure is non-negotiable. Lilacs need at least six hours of direct sunlight in order to produce the most blooms. Second, soil drainage is very important. Lilacs absolutely hate soggy feet and will produce very few blooms under soggy conditions.
Lilacs require good air circulation to prevent powdery mildew that will cover their leaves and ruin their fragrance. Position them to take advantage of the breezes. Never plant them too close to walls or fences in stagnant areas.
Timing Your Succession Display
To keep neighbors talking about your lilac display all season long, it’s all in the planning. Begin with early varieties such as Firmament in April. Then, in early May, include mid bloomers like Snow Shower and Professor Robert B. Clark. Finish off May with late bloomers such as Ludwig Spaeth.
Because of this approach, your yard can keep that lovely lilac scent for six to eight weeks instead of the typical two weeks that single-variety plantings give.
Guidelines to Ensure Your Blooms Blossom
Lilacs are very easy to take care of once they are established. While they are low-maintenance plants, there are a few things you can do to make sure your lilac bushes have the best shows. For example, you should definitely remove the spent flowers right after blooming to help with flowering the following year. Additionally, you should try to avoid heavy pruning, as lilacs bloom on old wood. Too much pruning will lead to fewer blooms on your lilacs.
Also, highly fertilizing is not a good idea for a lilac bush. It likes to grow in slight alkaline soil, and when there is too much nitrogen is added, it will grow more leaves instead of flowering, which will reduce blooming. Just a bit of compost in spring will be sufficient for them.
