Crowded with hundreds of tiny florets in shades of blue, mauve, pink and white, lilac is one of the prettiest shrubs of spring. Heavy with tapering, flower-packed blooms and remarkable perfume, it remains a firm British favourite. Small branches are fabulous as cut flowers and the shrub can even be grown in pots to encourage early bloom. Lilac images adorn fabrics and wallpapers, and the fragrance is captured in perfumes and toiletries.

TYPES OF LILACS
The common lilac shrub, Syringa vulgaris, was introduced to Britain in the 16th century from the mountains of south-eastern Europe. Its Latin name Syringa means pipe or reed and refers to the fact that lilac wood was once fashioned for the stem of pipes. Bearing a profusion of small, single grey-mauve flowers, the original species has been improved and nurtured over the years to give us today a wonderful array of varieties, which are incredibly rich in palette and perfume.

Fantastic heavy-headed double lilacs offer the widest variety of colour, and even in white their waxy florets have an intense depth and luminosity. Shades range from clearest blue, then with ever-increasing tones of pink, through the mauves and lilacs into crimson and purple.
Fancy lilacs combine colours – some look dark as a closed bud and then open to reveal a brighter or different colour, while others deepen in hue as the flowers unfold and ripen on the stem. Some lilacs are striped in clear two-tone colours, such as the purple petals of S. 'Sensation', which are beautifully edged with white. And the white, ivory and cream lilacs have their own subtle nuances, which are attributed to an absence of colour caused by blanching when undergoing the process of forcing for early blooms. Compare the magnificent pure-white, double flowers of S. 'Madame Lemoine', to the delicate yellow shade of S. 'Primrose', which assumes the golden glow associated with the palest primrose in early spring sunshine.

HOW TO GROW LILACS
These improved decorative varieties are commonly grafted onto species or privet rootstock; you must remove suckers that may spring up from the base of the plant so that it does not revert to type. Recent horticultural developments have made the more desirable lilac varieties available by micro propagation, which ensures the resulting lilac remains true to type. For a multitude of beautiful blooms, lilacs are best planted in a fairly rich soil in a sunny spot in the garden. Remember to remove dead heads this year to ensure you have an abundance of flowers next season.

WHERE TO BUY LILACS
• Notcutts Nurseries, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 4AF, (01394) 445400. Notcutts specialises in lilacs; call for details of your nearest garden centre. Mail order available.
• Barncroft Nurseries, Dunood Lane, Longsdon, near Leek, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire ST9 9QW, (01538) 384310. Mail order available.
• Beeches Nursery, Village Centre, Ashdon, Saffron Waldon, Essex CB10 2HB, (01799) 584362. Mail order available.

WORDS AND STYLING JACKY HOBBS
PHOTOGRAPHS MICHELLE GARRETT
APRIL 2004