lilac

 

any plant of the genus Syringa, deciduous Old World shrubs or small trees of the family Oleaceae (olive family), widely cultivated as ornamentals. Since colonial days, the common lilac has been in America one of the best loved of the flowering shrubs, meriting its favor by its cone-shaped masses of lavender or white flowers, its fragrance, and its ease of cultivation. Some cities (e.g., Rochester, N.Y.) have lilac festivals. The purple flower clusters are the floral emblem of New Hampshire. From this old-fashioned common lilac (S. vulgaris) and others, many hybrids have been developed with variations in form (such as double flowers) and in color (such as rosy pink and white). These hybrids, which may lack the fragrance of the common lilac, are often called French lilacs because much of the pioneer hybridizing was done in France. The most famous use of the lilac in poetry is Whitman's elegy on Lincoln, “When Lilacs Last in the Dooryard Bloom'd.” The lilac should not be confused with the unrelated mock orange (of the saxifrage family), which is sometimes also called syringa; both plants are sometimes called pipe tree. Lilacs are classified in the division Magnoliophyta, class Magnoliopsida, order Scrophulariales, family Oleaceae.

Bibliography

See D. Wyman, Shrubs and Vines for American Gardens (rev. ed. 1969).

Alternate meaning: Lilac (color)

Lilac
Common Lilac (Syringa vulgaris) in flower
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae Division: Magnoliophyta Class: Magnoliopsida Order: Lamiales Family: Oleaceae Genus: Syringa Mill.
Species
About 20 species; see text.

Lilacs (Syringa) are a genus of about 20 species of flowering plants in the olive family (Oleaceae), native to Europe and Asia. Lilacs range in size from large shrubs to a small bushes, 2–10 m tall. The leaves are opposite (occasionally in whorls of three), deciduous, and in most species simple and heart-shaped, but pinnate in a few species (e.g. S. laciniata, S. pinnatifolia). The flowers are produced in spring, each flower about 1 cm diameter, white, pale pink or more generally purple, with four petals. The flowers grow in large panicles, and in several species have a strong fragrance. Flowering starts after 80–110 growing degree days.

Lilacs are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including Copper Underwing, Scalloped Oak and Svensson's Copper Underwing.

Cultivation and uses

Lilacs are popular shrubs in parks and gardens throughout the temperate zone. In addition to the species listed above, several hybrids and numerous cultivars have been developed. The term French lilac is often used to refer to modern double-flowered cultivars, thanks to the work of prolific breeder Victor Lemoine.

Lilacs flower on old wood, and produce more flowers if unpruned. If pruned, the plant responds by producing fast-growing young vegetative growth with no flowers, in an attempt to restore the removed branches; a pruned lilac often produces few or no flowers for one to five or more years, before the new growth matures sufficiently to start flowering. Unpruned lilacs flower reliably every year. Despite this, a common fallacy holds that lilacs should be pruned regularly. If pruning is required, it should be done right after flowering is finished, before next year's flower buds are formed. Lilacs generally grow better in slightly alkaline soil.

Lilac bushes can be prone to powdery mildew disease, which is caused by poor air circulation.

A pale purple colour is generally known as 'lilac' after the flower. Purple lilacs symbolise first love and white lilacs youthful innocence (see Language of flowers).

The wood of lilac is close-grained, diffuse-porous, extremely hard and one of the densest in Europe. The sapwood is typically cream-coloured and the heartwood has various shades of brown and purple. Lilac wood has traditionally been used for engraving, musical instruments, knife handles etc. When drying the wood has a tendency to be encurved as a twisted material, and to split into narrow sticks. The wood of Common Lilac is even harder than for example that of Syringa josikaea.

Syringa vulgaris is the state flower of New Hampshire, because it "is symbolic of that hardy character of the men and women of the Granite State" (New Hampshire Revised Statute Annotated (RSA) 3:5).

Etymology

The genus name Syringa is derived from syrinx meaning a hollow tube or pipe, and refers to the hollow state of the younger shoots in some species. The name "pipe tree" is occasionally used.

Lilac leaves

Lilac flowers

Lilac flower head of a double-flowered cultivar

Lilac flowers

Species

• Syringa afghanica
• Syringa emodi - Himalayan Lilac
• Syringa josikaea
• Syringa komarowii (syn. S. reflexa)
• Syringa laciniata - Cut-leaf Lilac
• Syringa mairei
• Syringa microphylla
• Syringa meyeri
• Syringa oblata
• Syringa persica - Persian Lilac
• Syringa pinetorum
• Syringa pinnatifolia
• Syringa protolaciniata
• Syringa pubescens (syn. S. julianae, S. patula)
• Syringa reticulata (syn. S. pekinensis) - Japanese Tree Lilac
• Syringa spontanea
• Syringa sweginzowii
• Syringa tibetica
• Syringa tomentella
• Syringa villosa
• Syringa vulgaris - Common Lilac
• Syringa wardii
• Syringa wolfii
• Syringa yunnanensis - Yunnan Lilac

Festivals

Numerous locations around North America hold yearly Lilac Festivals, the longest-running of which is the one in Rochester, New York.

References

• Flora Europaea: Syringa
• Flora of China: Syringa
• Flora of Pakistan: Syringa

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