Botanical name:                  Syringa vulgaris

Family:                                   Oleaceae

Common Name:                   Lilac

Habitat and Distribution:

A native of Romania, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Albania and N.E. Greece.

Commonly found in scrub on rocky chalk or limestone hills.

Description:

An upright deciduous shrub, 2.4-4 metres (8-15 ft) tall, and 1.8-3.6 metres (6-12 ft) wide.

The lower parts of the branches do not have leaves. The leaves are heart shaped, 5-12.5 cm (2-5 in) long and dark green in colour.

The flowers are fragrant, lilac in colour and are borne in dense, large erect, pyramidal terminal panicles in May. The panicles are very showy and 10-20 cm (4-8 in) long.

The beaked fruit capsules are borne in autumn in large panicles located at the terminal tips of branches.

The bark is smooth and light-grey in colour.

The shrub was introduced to England in the 16^th century. It is a common garden escape and is readily naturalised.

Over 500 different cultivars have been selected and named, the flower colours vary from white, through creamy-yellow to red, blue and purple.

The common lilac, Syringa vulgaris, has been the state flower of New Hampshire since 1919. It was imported from England and planted at the home of the governor 1750.

Timber:

Lilac yields small quantities of a very hard, pale coloured wood.

Uses:

Since only small pieces of timber are available its use has been restricted to carving, turning and marquetry, most notably in the mosaic work known as Tunbridge Ware

Location within the arboretum:

A number of varieties are located in the old entrance gate area, just to the north of the grass maze.

Furniture Makers Trees at The Arboretum - Kew at Castle Howard

 

Fragrant flowers in August

Leaf looking a little tired in September

Fresh looking leaf in April

Fruit capsules

Cross section of timber

Lilac walking stick head

Tunbridgeware box

Pen blanks of lilac wood

Tunbridgeware