Tinkerbelle Lilac
Syringa x 'Bailbelle' (PP #12,294)
Tinkerbelle Lilac
Syringa x 'Bailbelle' (PP #12,294)
How are the heights measured?
All tree, and nothin' but the tree! We measure from the top of the soil to the top of the tree; the height of the container or the root system is never included in our measurements.
What is a gallon container?
Nursery containers come in a variety of different sizes, and old-school nursery slang has stuck. While the industry-standard terminology is to call the sizes "Gallon Containers", that doesn't exactly translate to the traditional liquid "gallon" size we think of. You'll find we carry young 1-gallons, up to more mature 7-gallons ranging anywhere from 6 inches to 6ft.
How does the delivery process work?
All of our orders ship via FedEx Ground! Once your order is placed online, our magic elves get right to work picking, staging, boxing and shipping your trees. Orders typically ship out within 2 business days. You will receive email notifications along the way on the progress of your order, as well as tracking information to track your plants all the way to their new home!
Why are some states excluded from shipping?
The short & sweet answer is: "United States Department of Agriculture Restrictions." Every state has their own unique USDA restrictions on which plants they allow to come into their state. While we wish we could serve everyone, it's for the safety of native species and helps prevent the spread of invasive disease & pests. We've gotta protect good ole' Mother Nature, after all.
About Me
-
The Tinkerbelle® Lilac is the perfect choice for smaller gardens, especially in cold areas where the range of dwarf lilacs is limited. It grows into a rounded bush no more than 6 feet tall and 5 feet across, and every May it is smothered in large trusses of dramatic wine-red flower buds that open to reveal colorful pink flowers. Unlike some other dwarf lilacs, this one is richly fragrant with the spicy lilac perfume, which will flood across your garden. Plant it beneath a window to enjoy the color and perfume, plant one in the lawn, or in beds with other flowering shrubs. Wherever you grow it you will love this easy to grow bush, which is ideal for gardens everywhere, from zone 3 to zone 7.
- Glowing wine-red and pink clusters of spring flowers
- Rich with traditional lilac fragrance
- Perfect rounded shape only 6 feet tall
- Winter hardy to zone 3
- Ideal choice for smaller gardens and spaces
The Tinkerbelle® Lilac is easy to grow in full sun or partial shade. It thrives in almost any garden soil, except for very wet or very dry locations. It is largely free of the pests and diseases common in older lilac trees, and it requires no elaborate pruning to keep it dense, rounded shape. Just remove the flowers as they die, and your bush is ready to grow and bloom vigorously again, every spring. When not blooming its gentle form and green leaves will make an attractive backdrop for your other, later-flowering shrubs and plants.
- Plant Hardiness Zones 3-7
- Mature Width 5
- Mature Height 6
- Sun Needs Full Sun, Partial Sun
With the trend for gardens to become smaller, the traditional lilac – a tree reaching 20 feet or more – has become harder to fit into more confined spaces, but for many gardeners a lilac is essential in the garden. This is especially true in colder regions, where the range of spring-flowering trees is limited, and where many older types of lilac trees are a mainstay of the spring garden, since they are reliably hardy even in zone 3.
In recent years there has been increased interest in some of the smaller types of lilacs, and these are being more widely grown. Sadly, most of these newer dwarf forms are not so hardy, and they won’t grow and flower in colder zones. The arrival of the Tinkerbelle® Lilac is therefore great news if you do garden in those colder areas. Finally, a cold-hardy small lilac bush with fragrant flowers, that will grow no more than 6 feet tall, and be smothered in gorgeous rich pink blossoms every spring. Who could resist?
Growing Tinkerbelle® Lilacs
The Tinkerbelle® Lilac is a hybrid plant that has been tested and proven to be hardy in zone 3. It also, of course, grows well in warmer zones, except for the warmest areas – zones 8 and 9 – where the winter cold is not enough to mature the flower buds. It grows into a rounded bush no more than 6 feet tall, and at 5 feet across it will fit perfectly into a smaller garden.
Tuck it into the corner between two walls of your house, as part of the foundation planting. Place a pair on either side of your doorway (“When lilacs last in the dooryard bloom’d”), for the perfect spring welcoming, or plant a row as a natural screen along a boundary, or to hide an unsightly fence. Plant one as a specimen in a lawn or terrace. Alone or in a group, this is the perfect backdrop and early sign of spring, to place behind other, later-blooming shrubs. There is nowhere in the garden where this perfect dwarf lilac cannot be used to great effect.
Appearance
The Tinkerbelle® Lilac naturally has a dense, twiggy structure, and needs only minimal pruning. The leaves are smaller than in common lilac trees, being 1½ to 2½ inches long, and about 1½ inches wide, but they are of a similar shape and texture. The flowers are carried at the ends of the branches, and they are in pointed clusters called panicles. These are 3 to 5 inches long, and there is a profusion of them, covering all the bush.
The many tiny flowers in each cluster are deep wine-red when in bud, and as they open they change to light red and then pink, so that the flowers in a panicle blend many colors, creating a rich overall deep-pink effect. Unlike many other dwarf lilacs, these flowers do not disappoint us with a lack of fragrance. No, they are richly scented with that incomparable lilac perfume, which is so evocative, spicy and rich.
Planting and Initial Care
The Tinkerbelle® Lilac should be planted in full sun or partial shade, in almost any garden soil, from sandy to clay. Adding organic material when planting, and as an annual mulch after flowering, will help keep your bush vigorous and healthy. Water deeply and regularly for the first season or two, and after that during periods of drought. This lilac is much more resistant to the usual problems of older lilacs, and it requires little attention.
It has a naturally dense structure of many branches, and will grow with little pruning, but ideally you should remove all the spent flower heads back to a pair of strong buds, as soon as the flowering period is over. This will encourage your bush to develop many more flowers next year and keep it neat and shapely as well. In future years you can remove some of the oldest branches close to the base, to encourage new strong replacement stems. For an informal hedge or screen, plant your bushes in a row, with each plant 3 feet apart. In bloom it will be a glorious sight.
History and Origins of the Tinkerbelle® Lilac
The Tinkerbelle® Lilac is a hybrid plant, created by Neal S. Holland in Harwood, North Dakota. In 1976 he crossed two older dwarf lilacs, the Korean Lilac (Syringa meyeri `Palibin`) and another Chinese Lilac (Syringa pubescens subsp. microphylla `Superba`). ‘Paliban’ has rather small flower panicles, and ‘Superba’ grows into a large bush and is only hardy to zone 4.
Mr. Holland grew plants from the seed he produced, and among the seedlings he found one that was compact, but with large, fragrant flowers. He tested it for years to be sure it was hardy and trouble-free, and then, with Bailey Nurseries Inc. of St. Paul, Minnesota, patented it in 2001. It was called ‘Bailbelle’ and sold under the registered name of Tinkerbelle. Our licensed growers produce beautiful young plants just bursting to grow for you, and our top-quality stock is limited. To enjoy the beauty of this plant in your own garden, order now.
