Lilac Love

A Fond Memory

Spring in Indiana was for me, akin to Dorothy waking up in Oz after that awful tornado. Literally overnight the landscape would change from dried piles of dirty snow melt, dead-looking trees, and brown crunchy grass, to vibrant Kelly greens, yellow daffodils and a heady aroma wafting from gorgeous clumps of lilacs at the tips of woody branches. I remember riding my bicycle past stand after stand of wild lilacs in the country to the carefully pruned shrubs in my own neighborhood. I would ride faster and faster, to deeply breathe in that sweet spring fragrance.

As my friends grew up, their tastes became more cultivated. They began to pine for the carnations, sweetheart roses, and eventually long-stemmed full-sized red roses left at their desks and porches by amorous suitors. Not me. I kept looking for the boy who would simply take his mom's kitchen scissors to the family lilac shrub. Now that would be the boy with impeccable taste!

Helpful Lilac Information

Lilacs can be found growing in any location that has good, hard freezes during winter months. They can be found in the wild, suburbia, nurseries and seed catalogs all over the world. If you are going to purchase a a tree or shrub, usually they will come as a small cutting with a root ball. Lilacs should be planted in full sun, in slightly sandy soil, or at least in soil that drains well. The perfect PH for growing lilacs is either very slightly acidic or very slightly alkaline. There are nearly 25 species to choose from, with most flowers being a shade of light purple (or lilac), however flowers are also available in darker purple and maroon, pale yellow, various pinks and white. Most varieties have the classic lilac fragrance.

Some varieties of lilac trees can become as tall as 35 feet. Smaller varieties of trees (sometimes referred to as "dwarf trees" or shrubs), will only grow to slightly under 6 feet tall. Although lilacs should be in soil that is well-drained, it is still important they receive about an inch of water per week (either through rainfall or watering). Most varieties will take 2-4 years before producing flowers. But be patient and don't prune. Lilacs do not react well to pruning, and if harshly pruned will not flower again for up to 5 years. Although lilacs are hardy, they are susceptible to a white powdery mildew, especially during winters when the temperature remains above-average.

To harvest lilacs for floral arrangements, cut stems with an instrument sharp enough to create a clean slice instead of a tear. Take as many leaves off the stem as you wish (although lilacs look especially beautiful against their green foliage if some of the leaves will fit into your vase), and place in lukewarm water with a dissolved floral solution. If no floral solution is available, you may dissolve an adult aspirin in the water. Add another aspirin every time you change the water in the vase. One lilac bouquet will remain fragrant for days, but the individual blossoms will quickly dry and begin to fall. Be prepared to keep the area under the bouquet clean of debris.

Lilac Trivia

As a fan of lilacs, I've found I'm in excellent company. Living in Indiana, I had heard of the week-long Lilac Festival in Mackinac Island, Michigan (link below). But here are a few things I did NOT know:

• The Spokane, Washington is "Lilac City" and also has a week-long festival every year. (link below)
• Rochester, NY is home of the oldest Lilac Festival in the United States (began in 1898), and that Rochester has the largest amount of lilac varieties in any one location (over 500, due to "breeding" of the plants~ such breeding helped produce "French lilacs", which are double-flowered stems) (link below)
• Lombard, IL is known as the "Lilac Village". Lombard is the home of Lilacia Park, which has over 200 varieties of lilacs and 50 varieties of tulips. Lombard must be a spring-time paradise! (link below)
• One of Walt Whitman's most famous works was a poem written as an elegy for Abraham Lincoln: "When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd"
• Lilacs (unlike lavender) are rarely used for baking or cooking. However, some people steep the flowers to brew a strong tea. Lilac tea has been said to have a "happy effect" on some sippers!

If you are able, I encourage you to get outside, to a park, a festival, or even simply sit at a kitchen table holding a vase of lilac cuttings. And the next time someone exhorts you to stop and smell the roses, look them dead in the eye and say, "Or better yet, the lilacs!"