Find Unusual Blooms at Hulda Klager Lilac Gardens in Woodland
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If you like the colors purple, pink and lavender, you’ll be in your visual glory during a visit to Hulda Klager Lilac Gardens in Woodland.
The spacious gardens are actually on the site of an 1889 Victorian farmhouse named in honor of Hulda Klager, a German homemaker who lived in the house and started the lilac gardens in the early 1900s. By 1915, she had registered seven lilac varieties and opened her garden to people who could visit and view her lilacs.
Klager ultimately began selling the flowers and lived to be 97 years old, supporting herself with lilac sales most of her life. In the mid-1970s, the property was scheduled for demolition until a group of concerned citizens formed the Hulda Klager Lilac Society in 1976.
They purchased and restored the property and also secured designations of the house and gardens as a state and national historic site.
Today, the gardens are open year-round to the public, and a huge variety of lilac hybrids are on display. In fact, the Lilac Society maintains 80 varieties of lilacs on the grounds.
The flowers are sold at a number of special events throughout the year, with the most notable being an annual Lilac Festival that lasts for 23 days each April and May. During the festival, visitors pay a $2 gate fee to tour the historic farmhouse, wander through the gardens and purchase lilac plants.
Officials with the lilac society say that the peak times to purchase the most vibrant flowers include the three weeks and four weekends prior to Mother’s Day. The society also enjoys dressing up the property during the first two weekends of December, when the gardens are brightly illuminated.
Story by Kevin Litwin
