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Sunday, May 4, 2014

Lilacs in May





 One of the things I have missed the most since I left my home in Connecticut was the lilac bushes I had growing along a fence in the backyard.  The smell was breathtaking.  I remember taking bunches wrapped in wet paper towels and newspaper on the train to my office in the city where they would be arranged on a vase on top of my desk.  Everyone who walked in would marvel at their beauty and scent.




For the past five years I have had to "make do" with gardenias and camellias and moped at the site of photos of lilacs from my friends up north.  That is until yesterday when my next door neighbor surprised me with a bouquet of lilacs and irises from her garden.  She had been telling me she had a bush on the side of her house, right under her bedroom window, but I hadn't taken her seriously. Lilacs? in Georgia? get out! Well the pictures below show how wrong I was.  And the smell? Just as powerful as I remember.

There was no question where they were going to be enjoyed the most.  My sitting room! The question was where.



My folding table from Asprey, a relic from my office in New York



or...the wrought iron table from Marshall's




And if you want to know where everything comes together in this blog, there you have it...Lindaraxa's editorial offices, all decked out for May!


All photos Lindaraxa
at

14 comments:

  1. MarthaMay 4, 2014 at 10:29 AM

    How pretty! I love the smell of lilacs -- last year my four bushes had about five blooms -- this year they are loaded and the air as you go out the back door is heady! For a WHOLE WEEK, the house -- every room -- was filled with lilacs so the fragrance both inside and out was amazing!

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    1. lindaraxaMay 4, 2014 at 9:34 PM

      It's such a wonderful fragrance and, to me, it permeates the atmosphere more than any other flower I know, except, perhaps, the night blooming jasmin.

      Delete
  2. Chronica DomusMay 4, 2014 at 12:06 PM

    How lucky you are to enjoy the joys of lilacs from such a dear neighbor friend. I would love to grow them in my garden but they don't thrive at all in our climate. The few I see in my area are quite spindly. We are lucky to have a wonderful flower market in San Francisco, which is my source for these beauties.

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    1. lindaraxaMay 4, 2014 at 9:36 PM

      You are lucky indeed. If only I had a flower market like the one you have in SF.

      Delete
  3. ParnassusMay 4, 2014 at 2:31 PM

    I also associate Connecticut and lilacs. When I went to school in New Haven, the city was filled with Victorian houses, many of which had lilacs and other old-fashioned flowers in the yards. Some of these garden survivals could be directly approached, since the university now owns and uses many of the old houses. Lilacs could also often be spotted where they had outlived their original houses, in vacant lots or in hedges next to commercial buildings.
    --Jim

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    1. lindaraxaMay 4, 2014 at 9:38 PM

      Yes, there are a lot of lilac bushes in CT in places like they had outlived their original houses. In Georgia it is the same, except the culprit is the honeysuckle!

      Delete
  4. Francie NewcombMay 4, 2014 at 7:34 PM

    Lilacs are heavenly. I grew up on my mother's family acreage where there was a long row of lilac bushes with an empty space which we children called "the lilac house." Years later when I was teaching Latin one of my Virgil students brought me an armload of purple lilacs one May morning-- she was like a hockey-playing goddess of spring! Your neighbor's lilacs are divine and I know the scent is too.

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    1. lindaraxaMay 4, 2014 at 9:40 PM

      I know, lilacs were a very special gift. For a week, I had "orders' for the ones from my garden. The ones sold in the city were prohibitive!

      Delete
  5. The Devoted ClassicistMay 5, 2014 at 9:04 AM

    I haven't had any luck with growing lilacs in Memphis, but I have tried. Peonies help ease the void, however.

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    1. lindaraxaMay 5, 2014 at 9:18 AM

      My daughter surprised me last year with a lilac bush. I will let you know how it fares. The one next door is a few years old and I wonder how long it will take for this baby to shoot some blooms....I might not be around to see it!

      Delete
  6. Libby May 5, 2014 at 4:14 PM

    I was just shown a lilac bush my neighbor planted a year ago and it's thriving! Cold winter, hot summer and all. It's "Miss Kim". Then I saw several of the same variety on the big garden tour last weekend. Do you know what these are? I'm definitely going to "get me one" any day!!!

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  7. lindaraxaMay 5, 2014 at 5:07 PM

    I am no expert on lilacs but I will go check and see if the tag is still on. I will also check at Pike's and see what they have there. Usually they carry plants that thrive in our neck of the woods. We will get this little problem solved!

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  8. SoutherncookMay 6, 2014 at 1:59 PM

    Your bouquet is just beautiful and I know you will enjoy it. What a thoughtful neighbor. I too wish we could grow lilacs in N FL but I know better. I hope your fairly newly planted bush does well for you.

    Carolyn

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    1. lindaraxaMay 6, 2014 at 4:22 PM

      The bouquet lasted until yesterday, although the irises are still going strong. I have missed you. Are you blogging? do I have the right site on the right for you?

      Delete

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