Lilac
Best varieties: Common (Syringa vulgaris), Sensation (bicolor), Miss Kim (compact), Bloomerang (reblooming)
Easy
Shrub
❄️ Frost Hardy
🐾 Pet Safe
🌲 PNW Growing Notes
Classic spring fragrance. Needs some winter chill to bloom well—Seattle provides just enough. Plant in full sun for best flowering. Bloomerang varieties rebloom in fall.
☀️ Light
Full sun (6+ hrs)
💧 Water
Moderate once established
🪨 Soil
Well-drained, neutral to slightly alkaline pH 6.5–7.5
📏 Spacing
72" apart
📅 Planting Timeline (Seattle)
🪴
Transplant Outdoors
Fall or spring
🌸
Bloom Season
Apr–May (spring); Sep–Oct (reblooming types)
💡 Pro Tip
Prune immediately after spring bloom—lilacs set next year’s buds in summer. Remove spent flowers and suckers to maintain shape.
🤝 Companion Planting
✅ Good Companions
Peonies, Iris, Daylilies