General Plant Information (Edit)
Plant Habit: Shrub
Sun Requirements: Full Sun
Full Sun to Partial Shade
Water Preferences: Mesic
Soil pH Preferences: Neutral (6.6 – 7.3)
Slightly alkaline (7.4 – 7.8)
Moderately alkaline (7.9 – 8.4)
Minimum cold hardiness: Zone 3 -40 °C (-40 °F) to -37.2 °C (-35)
Plant Height: 6 to 10 feet
Plant Spread: 6 to 10 feet
Leaves: Deciduous
Flowers: Showy
Blooms on old wood
Flower Color: Lavender
Pink
Purple
White
Flower Time: Late spring or early summer
Wildlife Attractant: Bees
Butterflies
Pollinators: Various insects
Miscellaneous: Monoecious

Image
Common names
  • Preston Hybrid Lilac
  • Lilac

Photo Gallery
Location: Downingtown, Pennsylvania
Date: 2012-05-04
flowers at top of shrub
Location: Downingtown, Pennsylvania
Date: 2012-05-04
full-grown shrub in bloom
Location: Downingtown, Pennsylvania
Date: 2012-05-04
flowers and leaves
Location: My Garden
Date: 2013-06-22
This lilac blooms pure white but in a few days aquires a lovely p
Location: RHS Harlow Carr, Yorkshire, UK
Date: 2019-05-24
Location: My Garden
Date: 2013-06-22
Location: RHS Harlow Carr, Yorkshire, UK
Date: 2019-05-24
Location: My Garden
Date: 2013-06-22
Location: RHS Harlow Carr, Yorkshire, UK
Date: 2016-06-06
Comments:
  • Posted by ILPARW (southeast Pennsylvania - Zone 6b) on Apr 25, 2020 10:06 AM concerning plant:
    This is a hybrid species between the Late Lilac (Syringa villosa) x the Nodding Lilac (Syringa reflexa), which are very similar species, both from China. It tends to look more like the Late Lilac species. This hybrid species was developed by Isabella Preston of Ottawa, Canada, in the 1920s and later.There are a number of different cultivars, such as 'Donald Wyman,' used in gardens and landscapes. Not as commonly sold as the Common or Persian or Miss Kim Manchurian or Dwarf Korean Lilacs in the Midwest or Mid-Atlantic US. I just see a very few around, though I have sold some at nurseries. The flowers bloom in late May into early June and the flowers are borne on the current year's growth rather than last season's growth as with most lilacs and other shrubs. The flowers are fragrant, but not with the sweeter odour of the Common Lilac, but smelling sort of like a Privet, a member of the same Olive Family as Lilacs.
  • Posted by Mindy03 (Delta KY) on Mar 23, 2012 2:30 PM concerning plant:
    Honey bees get nectar and pollen from this plant.

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