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Lilac Syringa vulgaris (Oleaceae) HEIGHT to 7m
A small deciduous tree, but sometimes little more than a multi-stemmed shrub with a rounded crown and a short bole surrounded by suckers. BARK Greyish and spirally fissured in older trees. BRANCHES Usually a mass of ascending branches. The twigs are rounded and shiny greenish-brown. LEAVES Short-petioled and opposite, up to 10cm long, ovate or slightly heart-shaped with entire margins and a slightly leathery feel; they are usually yellowish-green with a smooth surface. REPRODUCTIVE PARTS The fragrant lilac flowers are borne in dense, paired conical spikes, up to 20cm long, arising from the apical leaf axils; the flowers are at their best in May and June. Individual flowers are up to 1.2cm long and 4-lobed. The fruit is a pointed ovoid capsule up to 1cm long. STATUS AND DISTRIBUTION A native of rocky hillsides in the Balkans, growing in open thickets and scrub, but long cultivated in the rest of Europe for its attractive fragrant flowers. In Britain and Ireland, it is a popular garden plant and frequently naturalised as well, spreading by vegetative means (mainly suckers) rather than seed.
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© PAUL STERRY/Nature Photographers
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1738x2672 / 1.3MB
www.naturephotographers.co.uk
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Lilac Syringa vulgaris (Oleaceae) HEIGHT to 7m <br /> A small deciduous tree, but sometimes little more than a multi-stemmed shrub with a rounded crown and a short bole surrounded by suckers. BARK Greyish and spirally fissured in older trees. BRANCHES Usually a mass of ascending branches. The twigs are rounded and shiny greenish-brown. LEAVES Short-petioled and opposite, up to 10cm long, ovate or slightly heart-shaped with entire margins and a slightly leathery feel; they are usually yellowish-green with a smooth surface. REPRODUCTIVE PARTS The fragrant lilac flowers are borne in dense, paired conical spikes, up to 20cm long, arising from the apical leaf axils; the flowers are at their best in May and June. Individual flowers are up to 1.2cm long and 4-lobed. The fruit is a pointed ovoid capsule up to 1cm long. STATUS AND DISTRIBUTION A native of rocky hillsides in the Balkans, growing in open thickets and scrub, but long cultivated in the rest of Europe for its attractive fragrant flowers. In Britain and Ireland, it is a popular garden plant and frequently naturalised as well, spreading by vegetative means (mainly suckers) rather than seed.