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White Lilac Tree Help

sylvieathomesylvieathome Posts: 16
in Plants
Hello,
I was wondering if anyone knows about white lilac trees. I'm a novice gardener and I am guessing this is white lilac. It has bloomed and the flowers smell lovely - but there are bare branches. Since they are dead, is it ok to cut off those dead branches now?
I don't think it's as full of blooms as it could be. How can I encourage more blooms?
At the base there are small bits of growth. Should I cut those off? 
Does anyone know what kind of soil/nutrients lilac trees like? We have clay soil. Do they like lots of water?
Many thanks for your help it means a lot to me.
Sylvie 

Ps I'm aware that I need to clear the base of grass but there are some bluebells growing and I need to wait until they die back before pulling out the grass. I hope that will be ok. 


Posts

  • robairdmacraignilrobairdmacraignil Posts: 782
    I found lilac trees will try to grow into shrubs with extra growth from the base so if you want to keep it looking like a tree then these need to be removed as the new stems will take away from the growth on the main trunk. Dead branches are not contributing much to the tree so I would remove these and the living branches should benefit form the extra air circulation and space. It might be a bit late to get it to produce more flowers this year but even the dead branches bring removed will help the existing flowers stand out more.
    https://www.youtube.com/user/sustainableveg/videos
  • sylvieathomesylvieathome Posts: 16
    robairdmacraignil said:
    I found lilac trees will try to grow into shrubs with extra growth from the base so if you want to keep it looking like a tree then these need to be removed as the new stems will take away from the growth on the main trunk. Dead branches are not contributing much to the tree so I would remove these and the living branches should benefit form the extra air circulation and space. It might be a bit late to get it to produce more flowers this year but even the dead branches bring removed will help the existing flowers stand out more.
    Oh I see thank you, I will remove the growth at the base and those dead branches. I really appreciate your help! Thank you so much! 
  • sylvieathomesylvieathome Posts: 16
    Songbird-1 said:
    Dead head the flowers when they’ve finished too and do any light pruning over Autumn. This will encourage new bud growths next year. Keep in a shape  you’re happy with and height. Maybe a little Fish, blood and a one fertiliser round the base in Spring and plenty of water in dry periods, and it should respond fairly well. 
    Oh thank you! I'll make sure to deadhead the flowers. I've cut off most of the bare branches and it looks better already:
    I wish I could take some cuttings and grow them but I don't have any rooting powder.
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