It’s a wonder to see how well the lilac cuttings are taking. Passed along by Fred, they were a sorry-looking bunch of muddy twigs and roots – whose fate it was to be double-bagged, stuffed into a suitcase, and carted home (500km worth) on a Greyhound bus. Now that they’re in the ground, they are taking off and budding nicely (though one had a brush with the lawnmower). They are each planted within shooting distance of well-established lilac bushes… I guess the thought is to give the little guys somebody to look up to.