Picking and Arranging Lilacs from My Garden
The lilac hedges at my Bedford, New York farm are starting to explode with big, gorgeous and fragrant clusters.
I love lilacs, and have enjoyed growing them for many years. In fact, the common lilac, Syringa vulgaris, has been part of the American landscape for centuries. Lilacs planted in 1650 on Michigan’s Mackinac Island are some of the country's oldest known specimens. If you don't already have lilacs in your garden, I strongly encourage you to grow one, or two, or even three shrubs - they will give you years of beautiful blooms.
Here are photos of the first picked lilacs of the season and the arrangements we made with them - enjoy.
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- Here is just one of the beautiful lilacs blooming here at my farm. I planted an allée of lilacs about 17-years ago and it has thrived ever since. It is located behind my chicken coops not far from my tennis court. Lilacs are low maintenance, easy to grow, and can reach from five to 20-feet tall or more depending on their variety.
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- The lilac, Syringa vulgaris, is a species of flowering plant in the olive family Oleaceae. Syringa is a genus of up to 30-cultivated species with more than one-thousand varieties. And look at the beautiful lilac color.
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- Lilacs come in seven colors: pink, violet, blue, lilac, red, purple, and white. The purple lilacs have the strongest scent compared to other colors.
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- The bold lilac colors look pretty against the vibrant green foliage. Lilac leaves are simple, opposite, ovate, about two to four inches long, and usually shaped like elongated hearts.
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- Lilacs have pyramidal clusters of blossoms with both single and double varieties – all with the same glossy green leaves.
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- ‘Sensation’, first known in 1938, is unique for its bicolor deep-purple petals edged in white on eight to 12-foot-tall shrubs.
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- Lilacs were introduced into Europe at the end of the 16th century from Ottoman gardens and arrived in American colonies a century later. To this day, it remains a popular ornamental plant in gardens, parks, and homes because of its attractive, sweet-smelling blooms.
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- Here, one can see how prolific my lilacs are – so many sweet-smelling flowers grow along both sides of the allée – the fragrance is intoxicating.
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- Here’s Enma picking some of the first lilacs of the season. I asked Enma and Elvira to pick enough for a few arrangements – they will all fill my home with sweet fragrance. Lilacs grow best in full sun and moist, well-drained, humus-rich soil. It must drain well as lilacs cannot tolerate “wet feet” or wet roots. Soil that is average to poor with a neutral-to-alkaline pH is preferred. Established plants will tolerate dry soil, but newly planted shrubs need to be kept moist for the first year until their roots are set.
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- Once the flowers were picked, Enma and Elvira placd them gently on this towel. Most lilacs thrive in hardiness zones 3 through 7, in cooler climates with chilling periods. Lilacs are typically clump forming, producing new shoots from the base of the trunk, which can be used for propagating.
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- The next step was to get them to my Winter House. Enma and Elvira placed them on the stone ledge just outside my home to prepare them for water and arranging.
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- Elvira makes a small quarter-inch slit at the bottom of each stem so water can enter easily.
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- It’s a good idea to use very sharp, clean pruning shears to cut slits in the stems, then immediately plunge them into a bucket of cool water.
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- The process does not take that long, but each stem must be done. Here, Elvira quickly puts them in a bucket of water.
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- Lilacs typically appear from mid-spring to early summer just before many of the other summer flowers blossom. Young lilacs can take up to three-years to reach maturity and bear flowers – be patient.
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- By planting an assortment, bloom time will be staggered and can last for up to two-months. I am looking forward to picking lilacs for several more weeks.
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- Enma arranges the flowers by color.
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- Here she makes a light pink arrangement.
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- Once finished, water is carefully poured into the vase as quickly as possible.
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- This arrangement is placed in my sitting room where I can see it every day.
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- These lilacs are on my kitchen counter, the hub of my home, where I often have meetings – everyone smells them as soon as they see them.
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- And here is an all white lilac arrangement in my servery. These flowers are so pretty. Lilacs have been well-loved by gardeners for so many years. They are tough, reliable, and ever so fragrant. I hope this inspires you to grow lilac, the “Queen of shrubs.” It will quickly become one of your favorites in the garden.
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