The Size of Dwarf Lilacs

Little Leaf Lilac

• Short clusters of rosy pink blossoms appear in mid to late spring on the little leaf lilac (Syringa microphylla). It also occasionally re-flowers sparsely in early fall. In U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 5 through 7, gardeners often grow it as a standard -- a naked singular lower trunk with rounded ball of foliage and leaves at the top. Its green leaves grow slightly smaller than other lilacs. Little leaf lilac matures to 6 feet tall and 9 to 10 feet wide. Cultivar "Superba" produces lighter rose-colored flowers a little later in spring, but the blossoming extends into summer and early fall.

Miss Kim Korean Lilac

• Developed in 1954 in New Hampshire from seed previously collected in northern China, the Miss Kim Korean lilac (Syringa patula "Miss Kim") grows slowly, eventually maturing to 4 to 7 feet tall and 4 to 6 feet wide. Its silhouette is always more upright and oval than wide-spreading. The billowy and fragrant flower clusters occur in late spring and into early summer. The blossoms looks lavender but sometimes appear lavender-pink and age to powdery blue. Flower buds are dark blue-purple. Grow any Korean lilac, including cultivar Miss Kim, in USDA zones 3b through 8a.

Meyer Lilac

• The smallest of the dwarf lilacs is the Meyer lilac (Syringa meyeri), which is typically sold in the cultivar form named Palibin. This small shrub was discovered in 1909 in China, and Frank N. Meyer sent cuttings of the plant to the USDA. Also slow-growing but forming a dense, uniform and mounded silhouette, Meyer lilac matures 3 to 5 feet tall and 4 to 7 feet wide. It bears faintly fragrant, pale pink to pale violet blossoms that open from dark purple buds. It blooms in late spring and sometimes displays a sparse second flowering in late summer after Labor Day. Grow this dwarf lilac in USDA zones 4 though 8a.

Pruning Dwarf Lilacs

• All lilac shrubs produce flowers on branches that grew the previous year. Therefore, never prune lilacs from midsummer through winter. Conduct any pruning immediately after the spring flower display. Although dwarf lilacs remain smaller and picturesque without pruning maintenance, you can trim back branch tips by 6 to 12 inches to maintain the shrub at the same height year after year.