Farther away

I honestly don't know what that is.
But, I have to agree with you.
If that were on my property, I'd get rid of it too.
I really don't care what it is, it's ugly.

LOL. I didn't put it there, that's for sure. It's in front of a knee to ceiling living room window too. Whatever it is.

It looks like some type of lilac. Very fragrant! You may want to relocate it on your property since it's blocking your view and as well, some lilacs tend to get mildew on the leaves, rather unsightly.

Here -- and probably also in your part of the country -- this past winter was much colder than normal. Some things died, and others lost their blossoms and spring growth to the freeze. That may be why your lilac didn't bloom -- and the dead foliage in the first photo may be proof of that.

Read up on lilacs on GW's Shrubs forum and give it another year: you'll probably be glad you did.

The leaves do look mildewed. The Shrubs forum can advise about that.

[I'm not promising you it's a lilac, but it looks like one to me also.]

Thank you. That sounds promising. I'll be keeping my eye on it this spring.

Definitely Lilac. I'd wait until you see it in flower before condemning it. It has seed pods so it must have bloomed this spring.

Yes, a lilac - syringa vulgaris.

Unfortunately, most people grow it as an ungainly multiple stem shrub. When covered with mildew like that in the picture, it becomes an eyesore each summer.

However, when grown with a single trunk it becomes a very beautiful small tree. I came across such trees on Mackinac Island in Michigan. Their height and gnarly branches indicate their tremendous age. It must be a sight when covered with snow and the village must be perfused with delightful fragrance in spring.

jeserfen, I wonder if you would consider cutting the minor stems and train it into a one trunk tree. It will open up the bottom of the shrub and give you a view from your window.

From the look of it, short of using a backhoe, how would you relocate it as someone suggested?

first .... anything that doesnt please you ... has to go .... have no regrets ...

next ... tell us where you are... on posts... as noted.. here in MI ... last winter i had a z4 winter... in my usual z5 ... no lilac bloom at all ... on a dozen huge plants ... so i agree to give it until next spring.. though on close inspection.. you should SEE THE FLOWER BUDS RIGHT NOW ... if it is a lilac ...

third ... if it is a lilac.. and with most flowering shrubs... you can use a pruning system to renovate them ... see link

finally ... lilac can be a huge.. huge plant .... i had one in suburbia... and i was continually pruning it.... to keep it in size ... here on 5 acres ... as i said.. i have a dozen or so ... and many of them are a 10 foot ball of glory because i have the space ....

i would encourage you.. to be done with it.. after spring flowering .... if it does not fit the space.. or your vision ... or ... for whatever reason .... just maybe ... the spring flowering.. will change your mind ... and pruning of such.. is done within a month after blooming ...

let us know what you think after bloom ...

ken

Here is a link that might be useful: link

Unfortunately, most people grow it as an ungainly multiple stem shrub.

Not sure I'd agree with this statement. Common lilac, Syringa vulgaris, is by habit a multi-stemmed suckering shrub - that is it's natural form of growth. It can be trained into a more tree-like form but should be done while still young. I would not necessarily recommend this process with one this established and mature.

And it DID bloom. You can see remnants of the old flower clusters in the first photo.