Crowded with hundreds of tiny florets in shades of blue, mauve, pink and white, lilac is one of the prettiest shrubs of spring. Small branches are fabulous as cut flowers and the shrub can even be grown in pots to encourage early bloom.

Click here to visit our beautiful lilac gallery.

TYPES OF LILACS
Fantastic heavy-headed double lilacs offer the widest variety of colour. Shades range from clearest blue to 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.

HOW TO GROW LILACS
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, Ipswich Road, Woodbridge, Suffolk IP12 4AF
• Barncroft Nurseries, Dunood Lane, Longsdon, near Leek, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire ST9 9QW.
• Beeches Nursery, Village Centre, Ashdon, Saffron Waldon, Essex CB10 2HB.

WORDS AND STYLING JACKY HOBBS
PHOTOGRAPHS MICHELLE GARRETT
APRIL 2004