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One of the first shrubs to bloom in spring, weeping forsythia erupts with bright golden yellow flowers all along its bare leafless branches when most plants are still in winter dormancy. The flowers are 1-2 in (2.5-5.1 cm) across with four narrow petals that spread out at right angles from a short tube. There are 1-3 flowers per node. Weeping forsythia grows in a fountainlike mound up to 10 ft (3.1 m) tall and 15 ft (4.6 m) across, with multiple stems that arch up and outward like the canes of a Lady Banks rose. The slender stems are hollow between the nodes and dotted with numerous raised lenticels. The leaves, which begin to emerge after the flowers are already open, are arranged in opposing pairs along the long, arching stems. They are toothed on the margins and 2-4 in (5.1-10.2 cm) in length, and some may be divided into three lobes. Most cultivars of Forsythia suspensa belong to var. sieboldii, the true weeping forsythia. Var. fortunei is more upright, with stiff erect stems, and var. atrocaulus has purplish young shoots and pale yellow flowers. Border forsythia (F. X intermedia) is a hybrid species, created by crossing weeping forsythia with green-stem forsythia (F. viridissima). It is a bushier shrub with both upright and arching stems, and more numerous flowers. There are dozens of named cultivars of border forsythia, and many are showier in bloom than either of the parents. Most of the forsythias commonly available in garden centers are cultivars of border forsythia, and these are grown in the same way as the parent, weeping forsythia. One of the commonest cultivars of F. X intermedia is 'Lynwood' or 'Lynwood Gold', with rich golden yellow flowers on a 10' shrub that is both erect and sprawling.
Location
Culture
Use the forsythias in mixed shrub borders, mixed hedges or, better yet, as a specimen shrub so that its long arching canelike stems can be allowed to develop freely. Be sure to give it enough room. Weeping forsythia is often planted at the top of slopes, banks or containment walls so the stems can trail down. They can also be trained up a wall or allowed to grow up and into a tree or large shrub. This is especially attractive on a deciduous shrub or tree, covering it with happy yellow flowers in the very early spring before it gets leaves and flowers of its own. Weeping forsythia is not a good choice for foundation plantings. Periodic pruning of old, nonproductive stems at ground level will help maintain a healthy, vigorous plant by stimulating the growth of new stems. Prune soon after blooming because the buds for next spring's flowers are produced on stems that grew the previous summer.
Features Steve Christman 3/15/01; updated 12/6/06
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