Plant forsythia for bright early spring flowers

As you know, our dedicated staff has been working hard all month long to keep trees pruned and get the landscape ready for sunshine and spring. Our Great Estates feature plant of the month is the bright and cheerful Forsythia. Also known as “yellow bell”, Forsythia is not only the earliest spring bloomers, but also grows fairly rapidly.Forsythia are deciduous shrubs that typically grow to a height of 3 ft. to 9 ft. They can, rarely, grow up to 20 ft. The flowers are produced in the early spring and are a charming bright yellow color. These plants are popular early spring flowering shrubs in gardens and parks. They are also prized for being tough, reliable garden plants. The most common ornamental shrub, Forsythia suspensa can be grown as a weeping shrub on banks, and has paler flowers. However, Forsythia is frequently forced indoors in the early spring, making upkeep during the cooler months a little challenging.

The genus is named after William Forsyth (1737–1804), a Scottish botanist who was royal head gardener and a founding member of the Royal Horticultural Society. There are over 20 known varieties of forsythia, many of which have herbal properties that are excellent for natural rememdies. In fact, Forsythia suspensa is considered one of the 50 fundamental herbs in Chinese herbology. Forsythia sticks are used to bow a Korean string instrument called ajaeng.

All in all, this charming and happy plant is a great addition to any landscaping or gardening plot. Plant some forsythia in your garden today for those cheerful early spring flowers! And if you’d like to put a more decorative spin on your hedges, give your local landscaping experts a call for a quote on a forsythia installation. Celebrate our plant of the month and enjoy its gorgeous, yellow flowers that will brighten your landscaping design in time for spring.