SENSATION Common Lilac - Syringa vulgaris

🌿 General description

Botanical name: Syringa vulgaris ‘Sensation’

Family: Oleaceae (olive family).

Origin: Netherlands 🇳🇱

Breeder: Dirk Eveleens Maarse, Dutch horticulturist, in 1938.

Genetic origin: Spontaneous mutation of ‘Hugo de Vries’ lilac.

Type: Deciduous ornamental shrub.

Name refers to: Its spectacular, unprecedented character at the time: the first bicoloured lilac selected and marketed.

🌸 Characteristics

Mature height: 2.5 to 4 m.

Spread: 2.5 to 3.5 m.

Habit: Upright, bushy, relatively open and rounded with age.

Foliage: Medium to bluish green, heart-shaped, deciduous leaves.

Growth: Moderate to fast.

Hardiness: Zones 3 to 7 (very hardy, suited to Quebec winters). Some horticultural references even indicate zone 2.

🌼 Flowering

Period: May to early June in Quebec (mid-season flowering).

Flowers:

• Single, with four petals.

• Grouped in large, upright, relatively dense, pyramidal panicles.

• Each petal has a very distinctive white border.

Colour: Violet-purple to deep reddish violet, with a sharply contrasting pure white edge around each petal.

Fragrance: Pleasantly scented, generally moderate to strong depending on conditions.

Special feature: Each small flower looks painted, its purple centre outlined by a fine white border. This two-tone effect gives clusters an almost embroidered appearance.

🌞 Growing conditions

Exposure: Full sun (6 or more hours daily).

Soil:

• Rich, deep and well drained.

• Prefers neutral to slightly alkaline soil.

• Tolerates calcareous soil.

• Dislikes heavy, constantly waterlogged ground.

Care:

• Prune immediately after flowering to preserve next year's flower buds.

• Remove spent panicles.

• Remove basal suckers as needed.

• Apply mature compost in spring.

• Water regularly during the first few years after planting.

🌷 Garden uses

• As a specimen to showcase exceptional two-tone flowering.

• In shrub beds or flowering hedges.

• At the back of borders to create colour contrast.

• Near a patio or walkway to enjoy fragrant blossoms.

• In romantic, country-style or classic gardens.

• Excellent cut flowers for unusual bouquets.

💡 Did you know?

‘Sensation’ is considered the first bicoloured lilac ever selected.

Appeared in 1938 in the Netherlands as a spontaneous mutation of ‘Hugo de Vries’.

This botanical feature is called a periclinal chimera: tissues responsible for violet pigmentation coexist with pigment-free tissues, producing violet petals edged in white.

Received a First Class Certificate in 1938 from the Koninklijke Maatschappij Tuinbouw en Plantkunde (KMTP).

Interestingly, some flowers may occasionally appear entirely white due to variations in the arrangement of pigmented tissues.