Lilac - Arch McKean

Backyard Garden shrubs  


Lilac - Arch McKean

Arch McKean Lilac, Syringa vulgaris 'Arch McKean', has large, single, red-purple florets that are produced on very large upright blossoms. This plant blooms heavily in May and has a very nice fragrance. This lilac species is the common lilac, also referred to as French lilac,and exhibits extremely fragrant flowers on 4 to 8 inch dense panicles. It forms an upright shape with virtually no suckers and grows 8 feet tall and 8-10 feet wide. Arch McKean Lilac is a leggy, deciduous shrub, somewhat irregular in shape. It is an excellent choice for foundation plantings but also forms a good screen or informal hedge for property lines. It tolerates light shade, but best bloom quality and disease resistance occur in full sun. It prefers rich, moist, sandy loam soils. It should be pruned as needed by July. ... more

 

Sweetshrub It features very fragrant, brown to reddish-brown flowers (2" across) which bloom at the ends of short branchlets in May. Flowers give way to brownish, urn-shaped fruits (seed capsules) which mature in fall and persist throughout the winter. Lustrous, dark green (pale beneath), ovate to elliptic leaves to 6" long turn golden yellow in fall. Also commonly called sweetshrub and strawberry bush because of the reference to the fragrant blooms which have been described as combining hints of pineapple, strawberry and banana. Another common name is hairy allspice which is in reference to the hairy twigs and leaf undersides of this plant. It is easily grown in average, medium wet, well-drained soil in full sun to part shade. Prune immediately after flowering to shape or maintain compactness. Remove root suckers promptly if naturalization is not desired.

Lilac - Arch McKean