Images may show mature specimens and are provided as a guide only. As plants are living products, the size, shape and appearance of the stock supplied may vary from the images shown.
Nursery Direct
Charles Joly Lilac
Syringa vulgaris ‘Charles Joly’
Everything is included in this price: the plant, free delivery and professional installation
The price you see is the whole job: the plant supplied, delivered free and professionally installed. Done for you.
Supplied in 400mmtypically 1.5 to 2.5m tall on delivery
Want to see the actual plant?
The photo shows this species, not the individual plant reserved for you. Send us an enquiry and we usually reply within 1 business day with photos of the actual stock available in the size you want.
Request photosGetting it in: this size needs about 900mm of clear access. Measure the narrowest point on the route and tell us on the booking call. Standard access is included in the price, and anything unusual is quoted and agreed with you before work begins. What happens on installation day
Looking for a larger size?
Sizes shown are the sizes we currently source in this species. If you need larger specimens, project quantities or a size not listed, our sourcing team can look for it through our national supplier network. We confirm your exact stock with you on the booking call before anything ships.
Send An EnquiryYou order. We do the rest.
After checkout, our team contacts you to confirm site access and book a day that suits. Most orders are delivered and planted within 2 to 4 weeks of your booking call. Nothing else for you to organise.
Registered Australian business, ABN 33 683 675 603. Public liability certificates available on request.
Product Details
Overview & Specifications
Price includes everything: the plant, free delivery and professional installation by our planting team. One price, whole job done.
Charles Joly Lilac - Syringa vulgaris ‘Charles Joly’
‘Charles Joly’ is the dark one. Its double florets open a deep magenta red purple with a paler reverse, so the half open panicle shows two tones at once, and the colour holds better against sun than most reddish lilacs. This is one of the old French double cultivars of Syringa vulgaris still grown a century after its introduction, kept in production because the combination of colour depth and perfume has never really been improved on.
Why ‘Charles Joly’
Colour intensity: The darkest red purple in common cultivation, and it does not fade to washed out mauve as quickly as many lilacs.
Two tone panicles: Petal backs are noticeably paler than the faces, giving depth and movement to the flower head.
Perfume strength: Heavily scented, and a single mature bush will perfume an entire courtyard in the evening.
Mid to late season: It flowers after the early hybrids, so it extends the season when planted alongside them.
Longevity: Old lilacs like this are genuinely long lived shrubs and can be renovated by hard pruning rather than replaced.
Ideal Applications
Heritage and cottage gardens: The right cultivar for a period garden where an authentic old lilac is wanted.
Dark accent in a lilac group: Reads strongly against white and pale lilac cultivars planted nearby.
Cut flower production: The panicles are large, dark and long lasting in the vase.
Boundary shrub row: Makes a tall informal deciduous divider in a cool climate property.
Specimen & Installation
Spacing (screening/hedge): 2 to 2.5m apart
Spacing (feature/avenue): 3 to 4m apart
Best Planting Season: Winter while dormant
Soil & Drainage: Well drained loam with a neutral to slightly alkaline pH, and lime worked in where soil is acidic
Establishment Care: Water deeply once a week for the first two summers and mulch to 75mm, keeping the material away from the base of the stems. Remove basal suckers as they appear on grafted plants, and thin out a few of the oldest stems every second year after flowering to keep the bush productive.
Plant Details
Height: 3 to 4m
Width: 2.5 to 3m
Growth Rate: Moderate
Foliage: Deciduous
Light: Full sun
Native to: The Balkan Peninsula of south eastern Europe (the parent species)
Flower Colour: Deep magenta red purple
Delivery & Installation
Delivery and installation are included in your price
No freight calculators and no separate installation quote for a standard installation. Your price covers specialist plant transport, positioning and professional planting by our installation team. The whole job, handled.
- Wrapped, secured and transported by specialist plant freight.
- Professionally planted, staked and finished by our install team.
- Our team confirms site access and schedules a time that suits you.
Installation
Professional installation included, never extra
Every plant we sell is planted by our professional installation team, and it's already in the price. We coordinate the delivery, the machinery and the planting for standard site access, so your only job is choosing the tree. Unusual access or engineering requirements? We'll confirm everything with you after checkout before any work begins.
Questions? Send An EnquiryWhy Nursery Direct
Every price includes supply, delivery and installation
Buying a mature tree often means three separate jobs: the plant, the freight and finding someone to plant it. We price the whole job as one: the tree, the delivery and the professional install.
- One price: supplied, delivered and installed
- Mature trees and specimen palms at every scale
- National sourcing for hard-to-find stock
- Residential, estate and commercial projects
How It Works
Place your order. We do the rest.
We Supply
Premium advanced stock, selected from a national network of wholesale growers.
We Deliver
Specialist plant freight brings your order to your door. Free, anywhere in Australia.
We Install
Our professional team plants, stakes, mulches and finishes the job on site.







