Lilac - Syringa villosa Aurea

The Syringa villosa 'Aurea' is a beautiful variety with golden foliage of a prized botanical lilac known for its generous and remarkably fragrant flowering. With a naturally dense and bushy habit, this deciduous shrub of impressive stature offers bright yellow foliage at the beginning of the season, followed by a massive flowering in long, large, dense panicles of a very pale pink. It delights the gardener, as well as numerous pollinating insects. Very hardy and easy to grow in well-drained soil, this Asian lilac is an excellent plant for free hedges or shrub borders in all regions. A novelty to try!

The villosa 'Aurea' lilac is a horticultural selection derived from the hairy or velvety lilac, a botanical species native to northern China, Korea, and the Russian Far East. All lilacs belong to the olive family. This perfectly frost-resistant and tolerant shrub, however, prefers humus-bearing soils on limestone substrates. It only fears excessively dry or waterlogged soils in winter.

The silhouette of Syringa villosa 'Aurea' forms a large bush that is rounded, wide, and well-branched, as wide as it is tall, supported by thick branches. When mature, it will reach between 3 and 4 metres in all directions. Annual pruning helps to maintain it in more modest dimensions. This lilac does not sucker. Its growth is relatively rapid, encouraged by rich and moist soil. This variety blooms abundantly around mid-June, depending on the region, usually after common lilacs at the ends of the branches. Its inflorescences are pyramidal, wide, dense, more or less erect thyrses, highly fragrant, measuring up to 25 cm long. Each inflorescence comprises numerous small single flowers, pale pink becoming almost white. This fragrant flowering attracts many butterflies and other pollinating insects. Its foliage consists of large and wide leaves measuring up to 15 cm long and 10 cm wide. When they emerge in spring, these leaves are a beautiful bright yellow. They turn acidic green in summer, then take on a lovely dark yellow colour in autumn before falling.

Perfume, flowering, childhood memories, or even symbols of significant events, everyone has a good reason to love lilacs, as endearing as they are unpretentious. The Lilac villosa 'Aurea' is no exception to the rule: hardy, easy to grow even in cold regions, vigorous and undemanding, it embodies the charm and remarkable simplicity of these shrubs. It is a key element in creating a fragrant garden, with its flowering accompanying that of laburnums, roses, and star jasmine. It can be planted on the edge of a grove, in groups, as a standalone specimen, or in a mixed free hedge with other species (flowering apple trees, Japanese cherry trees, Chinese almond trees, Japanese quince...). Its highly fragrant clusters are appreciated in spring bouquets, alongside peonies, bellflowers, and florist's ranunculus.