New shoots will develop throughout the growing season; let them grow through the summer. Also, an old tree or large bush that has not been properly cared will grow large, unhealthy canes around the outside of the bush that shade the centre from sunlight and cause dwindled growth and blooms. Sign up to get all the latest gardening tips! (05/13/2008) By Bonnie. If you have to look up at a 20-foot lilac bush to see your blooms, then it’s time to prune it down – the right way. ... Prune lilacs to improve flowering in later years - As soon as the flowers fade. If lilac bushes are already too large or becoming unsightly, however, pruning the entire bush or tree to about six or eight inches off the ground may be necessary. Five lilac varieties to try. Deciduous ceanothus can be pruned hard (and often in the first two years). After three consecutive … This is the first time that I have had a yard, so I don't know a whole lot. The Japanese tree lilac (Syringa reticulata) is a plant that can grow as high as 25 feet and has become increasingly popular in urban environments. Prune to maintain an open interior and several main branches that form a vase shape. If the dwarf lilac bush is becoming old or bare at the base, cut the oldest stems back to the base of the bush. Trimming lilacs is best accomplished using clippers. Keep in mind that you may have to wait for flowers, as it takes about three years for them to develop once entire shrub has been cut. Avoid cutting off just the tops of long stems because this can leave the plant with an odd, unnatural shape. Prune a third of the oldest branches all the way to the ground each year for three consecutive years. The only right time to prune these shrubs is just after the last of the flowers fade away in late spring. Finally, if you want your lilac to fill in more and become shrubbier, prune the remaining new stems to an outward-facing bud. Deadheading is the practice of removing dead blooms from a plant by hand. Reasons Why A Lilac Bush Is Not Blooming And How To Fix Them, Lilac Seed Propagation: Harvesting And Growing Lilac Seeds, Lilac Care - Growing And Planting Lilac Bush Plants, Indoor Holly Care: Can You Grow Holly Indoors, Natural Christmas Decorations: Homemade Garden Christmas Crafts, Living Wall Kit Info – How To Grow A Living Wall Kit, Lilac Care – Growing And Planting Lilac Bush Plants, The Benefits Of Manure Compost In Your Garden, How To Turn Green Tomatoes Red & How To Store Tomatoes In The Fall, Growing Plants Indoors: Forcing Amaryllis Blooms In Winter, Phalaenopsis Orchid: A Surprising Addition To Holiday Décor, Gifting Holiday Plants: Secret To Keeping Live Poinsettia Plants Healthy, Handmade Ornaments – Holiday Ornaments Crafted From Nature. The general shrub pruning rule is to cut no more than a third of the stems each year. That will help the plant remain constantly vital, with new stems developing as old stems bloom. Although you'll be losing some flowers for the current year, pruning overgrown lilacs is easiest early in the spring before the branches leaf out. Its important to know when to cut back your Lilacs, prune to late in the fall and you will loose the flower buds for next year. Remove spent blooms all the way to the stems to prevent seeding and encourage more blooms later on. The common lilac (Syringa vulgaris) is a very cold-hardy plant, but if a hard frost or a freeze comes along just as the flower buds are about to open, they can be damaged. Prune the Josee lilac on a weekly basis to remove all dead blooms which will encourage it to continue blooming. Your goal is to have a lilac bush that has somewhere between eight to 12 stems of various ages, all of them between 1 to 2 inches in diameter. Find more gardening information on Gardening Know How: Keep up to date with all that's happening in and around the garden. A beautiful autumn display of lilacs is easy when you prune your Bloomerang® reblooming lilac after its spring show. Check the bush throughout the year for dead or diseased branches. Prune them right after they have finished blooming, and before they have started budding for the next year’s show. Prune lilacs in late spring to remove the dead flowers and broken or damaged limbs before the plant sets out its buds as it prepares for next year's blooms. Grow lilac bushes in full sun. Lilac Bush Plant Profile How to Grow Sotol Plants 'Miss Kim' Lilac Plant Profile How to Prune Lilac Bushes 15 Beautiful Varieties of Lilac 11 Great Fragrant Trees for Your Landscape How to Grow and Care for Bloomerang® Lilac 10 Top Fragrant Shrubs How to Grow and Care for Sweet Cherry Trees How to Help Your Lilacs to Flower 15 Recommended Flowering Shrubs for Your Home Best Shrubs With … When to Prune Lilac Bush. Thick lilac stems can be very tough. However, if left to grow and spread on their own, common lilacs will eventually only flower on the tops of the uppermost branches. The best time to prune a lilac bush is right after the plant is done blooming for the year. 6 Thin the inside of the lilac, selecting branches that cross or are in areas that are too dense. Japanese tree lilacs generally require little, if any, pruning until they are about 3 years old. Himalayan lilac has variegated leaves in fresh green with a darker green central splash; Syringa vulgaris ‘Lois Amee Utley’ – a large lilac with fragrant pink, double flowers. That is why you are advised to prune lilac bushes right after they are done flowering (before they have set bud for next year). To clear up any confusion, there is no difference between a lilac bush and a lilac tree, they are the same plant just called by different names. Carry on with regular maintenance pruning after this. And like other lilac varieties, they also can benefit from deadheading.. The second applies to older lilac bushes. Cut back about a third of the branches. Left on their stems, the flowers will die but continue sapping energy that could be spent on new growth. Blooms are often dependent on the weather. The best time to prune lilac bushes is straight after they ended flowering to allow new shoots enough time to develop for the next season. Dwarf lilacs, such as ‘Palibin’ Meyer lilac (Syringa meyeri ‘Palibin’) and ‘Miss Kim’ Manchurian lilac (Syringa pubescens ssp. Begin the procedure by removing one-third of the large, old stems at ground level in late winter. It is generally better to cut the entire stem. A pleasant summer during which healthy new growth develops will reward you with abundant blooms the following year. Fortunately, rejuvenation pruning can revive an old lilac in about three years' time. Grasp the dead flower and cut it off 1 inch below the base using hand pruners. Learn how to prune lilac bushes with Blain’s Farm & Fleet. Introducing "One Thing": A New Video Series, The Spruce Gardening & Plant Care Review Board, The Spruce Renovations and Repair Review Board, Pruning Lilacs and Other June Gardening Tips. This technique will cause more branching and create a denser shrub. The plant will begin to bloom all over, and you can do regular maintenance pruning from that point on. This regular removal of entire old stems will prevent your lilac from becoming too tall. Lilacs are generally pretty hardy and if proper pruning is performed, they will come back stronger than ever. Many of the newer lilac varieties grow quickly and might need pruning starting in their second or third year. On all varieties of lilac, the blooms sprout from old wood growth, not the spring's fresh shoots. Once the growing season has ended, remove any unsightly shoots. While a young, healthy lilac bush thrives with virtually no maintenance, pruning it each year after it blooms helps ensure a gorgeous array of new blooms the following spring. If you are looking for advice on how and when to prune common lilac, and would like to know what pests and diseases to look out for, read on… Common lilac, Syringa vulgaris, is a stunning bush type shrub known for its intense, sweet fragrance and its glorious purple, pink or white spring blooms. To prune your lilac bush, remove any small suckers near the base of the stems. If you are diligent with annual pruning of your lilac, the shrub will grow to about 8 feet tall with flowers throughout the branches. Read our, Remove Any Stems Thicker Than Two Inches in Diameter, How to Prune Shrub Roses and Knock Out Roses, How to Grow and Care for Bloomerang® Lilac, 11 Great Fragrant Trees for Your Landscape, Tips for Growing the Common Lilac in Your Garden. 1:48. The Miss Kim lilac is also called Miss Kim Manchurian lilac and Syringa pubescens. However, once the plant has matured, it won't need this encouragement, and you'll likely have so many flowers that the task would be too time-consuming. Plant new lilacs - Mid September. Also, thin out some of the new growth. Start by taking out the thickest stems first. The following winter, choose the shoots you want to keep and cut back … They are also often planted in rows along property borders and pruned into loose hedges. So don't panic if your lilac isn't as vibrant one year. This is usually in the spring. Oregon State University Extension, Pruning Lilacs and Other June Gardening Tips. The Spruce uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Learn tips for creating your most beautiful (and bountiful) garden ever. It has a vase-shaped crown with spreading branches, and it produces showy white flowers in June. Lilacs set next season's flower buds almost immediately, so late pruning will mean sacrificing the next year's flowers. Pruning early also gives new shoots more time and energy to develop, ensuring plenty of blooms for the following spring. A second way to prune old lilacs is to cut back the overgrown shrubs over a three-year period. Although there are smaller varieties, about ten to fifteen feet (3-4.5 m.), many lilacs can reach heights of about thirty feet (9 m.) tall without regular pruning. Lilac bushes will typically flower without any effort from you. If you have shaped your lilac bush to have one main stem like a tree or prefer an alternative to the three year plan, do one severe pruning in late winter. Julie Thompson-Adolf is a master gardener and author with 13+ years of experience with year-round organic gardening, seed starting and saving, growing heirloom plants, perennials, and annuals, and sustainable and urban farming. Syringa emodi ‘Aureovariegata’ – this Himalayan lilac is a large deciduous shrub 5m tall, with fragrant, tubular white flowers appearing from June onwards. Your current lilac bush may have been grown on white lilac rootstock, instead of purple or lilac, which is why it’s growing mostly white flowers now. In general, by the time a stem reaches more than 2 inches in diameter, it should be pruned. To prune a lilac bush, begin by removing larger stems from the center of the plant with a pair of sharp gardening shears or clippers. But with lilacs, the only time deadheading seems to help them bloom better is during the first few years of growth. Prune back one-third of the oldest branches as far as you can in winter. The time to prune mature lilac plants is just after the flowers have faded in the spring. Encourage branching by cutting back the remaining shoots to just above a bud. Prune your lilac bush when it is 6 to 8 feet (183 to 244 centimeters) tall. Although you'll be losing some flowers for the current year, pruning overgrown lilacs is easiest early in the spring before the branches leaf out. The 'Miss Kim' cultivar is small enough for use in foundation plantings, as is the even more compact Bloomerang lilac, which is a dwarf shrub. They are perennial plants that bloom in the spring, and start shedding-off flowers by the end of the season. If the tree grows too tall, you can cut back individual branches to around 1 foot below the desired height to prompt dense growth at the top. They don’t require pruning until they’re six to eight feet tall. By the end … You are suppose to cut right it after bloom dies, because they flower on the new growth. With some plants, this helps to stimulate continuing blooms. Thus, you should be pruning lilacs annually to maintain their form and create a balance of new flowering shoots and older stems. Your lilac also might occasionally require a more extensive "rejuvenation" pruning to revive a bush with very thick stems and minimal flowering. They will bloom less and less on wood that is older. New lilac plants should begin blooming within two to five years. If the lilac is grafted, prune the stem just above the graft union. Remove the branches by cutting just above a bud. The best time for pruning lilac bushes is right after their flowering has ceased. There are two approaches you can take. As long as the plant is healthy and you keep up with maintenance pruning, the flowers will follow. Severe renewal pruning is best in cases where there has been confirmed lilac borer disease or powdery mildew. When lilac flowers reach their peak and are just this side of fading out, cutting them to create indoor bouquets actually helps the plant. Lil… A summer with extreme weather will yield fewer flowers. How to Prune Lilac Bushes. Pruning Large, Overgrown Lilacs. If you are pruning lilac trees or shrubs entirely to within inches of the ground, it is best to do so in early spring. Common lilac bushes are attractive enough to be treated as specimens. After this, any necessary pruning should be done immediately after the flowering period is over. I was wondering if it is okay to prune them in the fall and, if so, how much is too much to prune back? Fertilize the plant with compost or a balanced fertilizer to prompt new growth. Prune with sharp gardening shears. They will tolerate some shade but bloom best when grown in full sun. have long had a place in American gardens. … University of Vermont Extension, Marie Iannotti is an author, photographer, and speaker with 27 years of experience as a Cornell Cooperative Extension Horticulture Educator and Master Gardener. When pruning lilacs, cutting back the tops of overgrown stems is oftentimes not enough. It is generally better to cut the entire stem. They do not do well in full shade. The following spring, begin pruning out the spindly growth, and maintain the healthiest shoots while considering the shape of the plant. Iowa State University Extension, Prune Lilacs Soon After Bloom. These old-fashioned favorites are wonderful additions to nearly any landscape. Begin by pruning dead or diseased stems, pencil-thin suckers, and twiggy growth. But they rarely require maintenance pruning, though you can prune when necessary for shape. Remove dead or diseased branches, and prune back. 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