My Syringa vulgaris lilac has died this year. Are there any common reasons for this. Only planted about 3-4 years ago.
By Appletok
east sussex,
United Kingdom 
We live near the sea but this was planted in good fertile soil where everything seems to grow really well. I also lost a bottle brush plant next to it. The only things that has been common are moles, would these be the cause?
1 Jun, 2009
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If you lost two plants near together, there's probably a common cause and it might be the microclimate where they are. Were they in a spot that's drier than anywhere else? Are they in a "frost pocket" (that's a spot that gets colder than other areas, usually in a hollow - frost flows like water) or, alternatively, higher up, not sheltered and exposed? We had a cold winter with snow this year. The other possibility that sometimes happens if the plants were next to a boundary with next door, has your neighbour been using weedkiller? If they're next to a path, have you applied path weedkiller nearby? These can sometimes leach into the soil and affect nearby plants, particularly if not mixed or applied correctly.
1 Jun, 2009