Content
Photos and descriptions of Madame Lemoine's lilacs allow you to get acquainted with the culture in detail. Fragrant bushes blooming in late spring leave few people indifferent, and this variety is distinguished by a particularly lush and long flowering, the peak of which occurs in mid-summer. It is the most famous of all double-flowered white lilacs.
Description of lilac Madame Lemoine
The lilac bush reaches a height of 3 - 4 m, the diameter of its spreading crown is about 3 m. The branches grow vertically upward, have dense bright green foliage that does not change color in autumn. The leaf plate is large, 6 - 11 cm long, dense, heart-shaped. The shrub grows quite quickly - the annual growth is about 20 cm. The bark on the trunk and old branches is dark gray, for young shoots a yellowish or olive tint is characteristic.
How the lilac blooms Madame Lemoine
This variety belongs to late flowering - abundant and prolonged flowering of the shrub occurs in June-July. The buds are large, cream-colored, the blossoming flowers are large, up to 2.6 cm in diameter, pure white, with a pronounced pleasant smell. Terry flowers, consisting of 2-3 corollas, are collected in dense inflorescences about 30x30 cm in size. Each inflorescence contains 1-2 pairs of strong panicles.
The bush reaches its maximum decorative effect by the age of 10–12.
Breeding features
Lilac Madame Lemoine is propagated by grafting, cuttings and layering. Distillation from seeds is also possible, but this method does not justify itself.
Inoculate lilacs with a sleeping bud or cuttings to Hungarian lilac, common lilac or common privet.
The success of propagation by cuttings depends on adherence to temperature and humidity requirements.
The most common way to get a young plant is by rooting cuttings. The lower branches of the mother bush are placed in grooves specially dug in the ground and sprinkled with soil. During the season, they will take root, and they can be transplanted.
Planting and caring for lilacs Madame Lemoine
Lilac Madame Lemoine is a relatively unpretentious shrub, however, it is the choice of location and the correct planting that determine how it will feel and how well it will be able to show its decorative qualities.
Recommended timing
Both early spring and late autumn are suitable for planting Madame Lemoine, but many gardeners insist that the best time is after flowering and before early September. During this period, the shrub does not waste energy on rapid vegetation and flowering, and it has the opportunity to take root before the onset of frost.
Site selection and soil preparation
Lilac Madame Lemoine prefers well-lit places, but it grows in partial shade. Low, waterlogged areas are not suitable for it. For the root system of this culture, the close occurrence of groundwater is destructive.
Lilac thrives on fertile, moderately moist, drained soils with a high humus content. An excellent option is loam, slightly acidic or neutral soils.
How to plant correctly
For better survival, it is recommended to plant lilacs in the evening in cloudy weather.
Lilacs are planted by Madame Lemoine in square pits with steep walls. If the soil does not need preparation, a size of 50x50 cm is sufficient. Organic fertilizers and ash are poured at the bottom. On poor soils, the pits are made twice as large and half of the volume is filled with a nutrient substrate from the excavated earth, humus, wood ash and superphosphate.
A seedling with a straightened root system or with an earthen clod is placed in a hole and covered with earth to the level of the root collar. Then the bush is abundantly watered and mulched. For 2–4 years after planting, it does not need to be fertilized.
If you plant a plant in spring, you need to remove all flower buds - so the lilac will put all its strength into rooting. When planting in autumn, it is enough to cut off only part of the buds.
Growing lilacs Madame Lemoine
Growing lilacs is not difficult. Like other varieties of lilacs, Madame Lemoine can withstand errors in care, but the more effort the gardener puts into taking care of it, the more effective the flowering will be. Watering, feeding, mulching and pruning are the main components of the correct cultivation of lilacs.
Watering
Lilac Madame Lemoine is hygrophilous. During the growing season and flowering, the amount of watering is increased, but water stagnation should not be allowed - thin roots may die. When the bush fades, watering is minimized so as not to provoke repeated swelling of the buds. It is recommended to water seedlings more often than adult plants.
Top dressing
Lilacs of the Madame Lemoine variety reacts to feeding with increased growth and abundant flowering. Fertilization is subject to several rules:
- if a nutritious substrate was introduced into the pit during planting, the plant need not be fertilized for 2-3 years;
- the main fertilizer is organic matter (manure, compost, bird droppings). It is brought in within a radius of about half a meter from the bush;
- mineral fertilizers - potassium and phosphorus are applied once every few years in August;
- during the active growing season, you can spray the bush with an aqueous solution of mineral fertilizers;
- feeding with ash dissolved in water is very useful.
Mulching
Mulching is a popular technique that makes it easier to care for lilacs. The use of peat, sawdust or humus as mulch immediately after planting helps the lilac to take root better, providing the root system with additional nutrition. Mulching also helps to retain moisture in the soil, prevents weed growth and eliminates the need to regularly loosen the bush. In winter, this procedure protects the roots of young plants from severe frosts.
Pruning
Pruning lilacs is an important part of caring for this variety. It has several subtleties:
- when the plant fades, the faded brushes are cut off, otherwise the buds will not form next year;
- if the plant needs rejuvenation, then the old branches should be cut out gradually, no more than 1-2 per year. This pruning is done in early spring;
- It is advisable to carry out sanitary pruning 2 times a year - in spring and autumn, but you can do it at any time of the year. In this case, all broken, dead or damaged shoots are removed;
- lilac Madame Lemoine does not need the obligatory formation of a bush, but many gardeners prefer to give it a spreading shape, leaving only 6-10 of the most well-located skeletal branches. This procedure is carried out until the kidneys are swollen;
- cut out all last year's shoots, which take food from the skeletal branches;
- remove root suckers;
- so that the lilac does not age prematurely, and the flowering is abundant every season, part of the flower buds is cut off. So the plant does not spend all its energy on flowering and does not need to be restored next season.
Preparing for winter
Lilacs of the Madame Lemoine variety have high winter hardiness and do not need shelter for the winter.Only seedlings can suffer from severe frosts, therefore, the near-stem circles of young bushes in the fall are mulched with a mixture of peat and leaves with a layer of up to 12 cm. In the spring, the mulch is removed so as not to interfere with the heating of the soil. Sometimes, with sudden temperature changes in Madame Lemoine's lilac, some branches may freeze. This does not pose a danger to the plant. These will need to be removed during sanitary pruning.
Diseases and pests
The varietal feature of Madame Lemoine's lilac is its resistance to diseases and pests. However, sometimes it can be affected by late blight of the kidneys and bacterial rot. Copper oxychloride and Bordeaux liquid help to cope with them. Specific pests of lilacs are lilac hawk moth and moth moth. To combat them, insecticides are used.
Conclusion
Photos and descriptions of Madame Lemoine's lilac do not leave indifferent either professional landscape designers or amateur gardeners. This extraordinary variety looks great both as a single element and as part of various plant ensembles. Undemanding care will allow even a beginner to enjoy the long abundant flowering of this variety of lilacs.
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