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Trouble-Free Lilacs: Good Lilac Varieties for the Garden

Syringa vulgaris 'Sensation' in bloom; photo by Ivo Vermeulen
Syringa vulgaris 'Sensation' in bloom; photo by Ivo Vermeulen

French Lilacs

BOTANICAL NAME
CHARACTERISTICS
Syringa vulgaris 'Henri Robert'
violet
Syringa vulgaris 'Monique Lemoine'
white
Syringa vulgaris 'Sarah Sands'
purple, fragrant
Syringa vulgaris 'Sensation'
deep purple and white
Syringa vulgaris 'Primrose'
creamy white/ yellow
Syringa vulgaris 'Ruhm von Horstenstein'
magenta, very fragrant
Syringa vulgaris 'President Lincoln'
blue, fragrant
Syringa vulgaris 'Mme. Lemoine'
white
Syringa vulgaris 'Charm'
pink
Syringa vulgaris 'Edith Cavel'
white, fragrant
Syringa vulgaris 'Marie Legraye'
white
Syringa vulgaris 'Andenken an Ludwig Spath'
deep purple
Syringa vulgaris 'Miss Ellen Wilmott'
white, fragrant
Syringa vulgaris 'Charles Joly'
magenta, very fragrant
The deep purple flowers of Syringa hyacinthiflora 'Pocahontas'; photo by Ivo Vermeulen
The deep purple flowers of Syringa hyacinthiflora 'Pocahontas'; photo by Ivo Vermeulen

Hyacinth Lilacs

BOTANICAL NAME
CHARACTERISTICS
Syringa x hyacinthiflora 'Excel'
lilac, fragrant, early flowering
Syringa x hyacinthiflora 'Mount Baker'
white, fragrant
Syringa x hyacinthiflora 'Asessippi'
lilac, fragrant, early flowering
Syringa x hyacinthiflora 'Pocahontas'
deep violet
Syringa x hyacinthiflora 'Churchill'
pink, early flowering
Syringa x hyacinthiflora 'Catinat'
pink, fragrant, early flowering
Syringa x hyacinthiflora 'Blanche Sweet'
blue, early flowering

Other Types of Lilacs

BOTANICAL NAME
COMMON NAME
CHARACTERISTICS
Syringa x lacinata
cut-leaf lilac
lavender
Syringa microphylla 'Superba'
little-leaf lilac
pink, fragrant
Syringa meyeri 'Palibin'
Meyer lilac
lavender; fragrant
Syringa patula 'Miss Kim'
Manchurain lilac
mauve, fragrant
Syringa reticulata 'Ivory Silk'
Japanese lilac tree
yellow-white, late-flowering
Syringa reticulata 'Summer Snow'
Japanese lilac tree
yellow-white, late-flowering
Syringa x josiflexa 'James Macfarlane'
James Macfarlane lilac
pink, late-flowering
Syringa x prestoniae 'Donald Wyman'
Preston lilac
lavender, late-flowering
Syringa x lacinata (cut-leaf lilac)
Syringa x lacinata (cut-leaf lilac)

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