Shrub · Oleaceae
Border Forsythia
Forsythia × intermedia
Welcome the first burst of yellow that opens long before anything else dares to wake in spring.
Full sun
Every 7–14 days
USDA 5–8
8–10 ft · 2.4–3 m
Overview
Forsythia is the shrub that gently lets you know winter has loosened its grip. Early in spring its bare branches glow with bright yellow bells weeks ahead of the leaves, while most of the garden is still asleep. It belongs to the olive family and grows fast into a big, arching mound, which is why so many gardeners have leaned on it for shrub borders and bank plantings over the years. If you are new to growing, this is a kind plant to begin with.
Here is the reassuring part: forsythia asks very little of you. It takes clay, sand, poor ground, and city soil in stride, settles happily into hardiness zones 5 through 8, and forgives a dry spell once its roots have taken hold. The one wish it truly has is sunshine. Tuck it into shade and the flowers fade away, and those flowers are the whole joy of growing it.
The one thing worth knowing before you plant is its size, and it is nothing to fear. A grown shrub reaches 8 to 10 feet (2.4 to 3 m) tall and spreads even wider, and the low branches will root wherever they touch down, so it can wander into a thicket if left alone. Give it elbow room to arch and a friendly trim each year right after bloom, and it will stay graceful rather than turning into a tangle.
Care
The short version: give it full sun for the best flowers, almost any well-drained soil will do, keep it evenly moist while it settles in, and offer one gentle pruning a year as soon as the blooms fade.
Light
Give your forsythia full sun and it will reward you with the heaviest bloom. It will still grow in partial shade, but each hour of shade quietly trades away flowers, and a shaded shrub leans leafy and shy of color.
Water
Water it regularly through that first year so the roots can settle, then you can ease off and let it coast. An established plant takes short dry spells in stride and wants only medium, even moisture, about a good soak every 7 to 14 days in dry weather. Just keep it out of soggy ground, which is the one thing that invites root rot.
Soil
Soil is where forsythia is wonderfully easygoing. It accepts clay, loam, sand, and even tired city ground, asking little more than a site that drains well and rests somewhere in the 6.0 to 8.0 pH range.
Temperature
This is a hardy, cold-tough shrub, at ease from roughly -20°F to 95°F (-29°C to 35°C). The plant itself shrugs off hard winters, though its flower buds can take some damage once the cold dips below about -5°F.
Humidity
Plain outdoor air is all it needs, so there is no humidity number to chase. Good airflow matters far more than any moisture level, since crowded, damp leaves are exactly where leaf spot likes to settle in.
Feeding
Forsythia is no big eater. A balanced shrub fertilizer or a little compost in early spring is all it wants, and going overboard only grows more leaves while costing you flowers.
Pruning
Prune just once a year, right after the flowers fade, and you can hardly go wrong. Thin the oldest stems out at the base, and cut the whole shrub back near the ground every 3 to 4 years to freshen it. If you wait past mid-July you will trim off next spring's buds, since the flowers form on old wood.
Repotting
Forsythia is a landscape shrub and seldom lives in a pot, so repotting rarely comes up. If you do keep one in a container, repot only when the roots circle and mat, water rushes straight through, or new growth stalls.
Size & spacing
Plan for a generous plant and you will not be caught out. A grown forsythia stands 8 to 10 feet (2.4 to 3 m) tall and spreads even wider, around 10 to 12 feet (3 to 3.7 m), so give it the room to arch freely without crowding its neighbors.
When to plant
Forsythia simply follows the rhythm of early spring, so you can relax and let the seasons guide you. Set new plants out in spring or fall once the ground works easily and hard frost has gone, enjoy the yellow bells opening in March and April ahead of the leaves, then give your one yearly trim as soon as the flowers begin to fade.
Northern hemisphere
Southern hemisphere
Typical months for a temperate climate: start earlier in warm zones, later where spring frosts linger.
- Plant: Spring or fall, after the ground is workable and the threat of hard frost has passed.
- Harvest: Early spring (March to April), before the leaves emerge.
Hardiness
USDA hardiness zones: 5–8
Temperature: down to -29°C
Troubleshooting
Forsythia is a tough, forgiving plant, so trouble rarely comes calling, and when it does the cause is almost always the wrong spot or a mistimed trim, both easy to put right. The notes below walk through the few things that go wrong. Find what matches your shrub, treat the cause, and you will likely have it back on track.
A drooping shrub with dark, soft roots
A forsythia that wilts and slips downhill in wet, heavy ground is most likely fighting Phytophthora root rot, which leaves the roots dark and soft to the touch. Little beads or swellings along the roots point instead to root-knot nematode, and either trouble grows worse when the soil stays soggy and packed. Gently lift a failing plant so you can read its roots, loosen the drainage, and pull back on the watering can. If one shrub is too far gone, do not blame yourself; lift it out and start fresh on a raised, free-draining spot.
Fix:
- Improve drainage and reduce watering
- Remove severely affected plants
- Replant in a raised, well-drained site
When spring arrives with few flowers
If the show was thin this year, take heart, because the fix is usually simple. Most often the shrub was pruned a little too late, and because the buds sit on old wood, any trimming past mid-July quietly removes next spring's flowers. Heavy shade can soften the display too, and a fierce winter may nip the buds once the cold sinks below about -5°F (-21°C). Move your trimming to right after the blooms fade, find the sunniest spot you can, and lean on a tough cultivar where winters run cold.
Fix:
- Prune only immediately after flowering, never in summer or late winter
- Move or limb up nearby plants to give the shrub full sun
- In cold regions choose hardier cultivars such as Northern Sun or Meadowlark
Spotted leaves and stems that fade back
Spots scattered across the leaves usually mean fungal leaf spot, and dry, sunken tips often signal stem dieback or canker that a thirsty plant invited. While you are looking, glance at the base, since rough woody lumps there can mean crown gall. None of this is the end of the shrub, so simply cut the dead and cankered wood back to fresh green tissue, wipe your pruners between cuts, and open the plant up so air can pass through. Watering down at the soil keeps the leaves dry and gives those spores far less to work with.
Fix:
- Remove and discard affected leaves and prune out dead or cankered wood to healthy tissue
- Disinfect pruners between cuts
- Improve air circulation by thinning the shrub
- Water at the base to keep foliage dry
Toxicity
Lovely news if you share your home with pets or little ones: forsythia is non-toxic right across the board. The ASPCA lists it as safe for dogs, cats, and horses, and it carries no poisonous compounds at all. Its flowers taste bitter, which gently keeps most animals from making a habit of nibbling anyway.
Safe for
People · Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds
Cats None
You can relax around cats. If one stops to taste a leaf or flower, no harm follows, and that bitter flavor tends to send a curious cat away before it eats more than a bite.
Dogs None
A dog can sniff, brush past, or even chew the branches and come away fine. The worst a big mouthful of any greenery might bring is a passing bit of tummy upset that clears up on its own.
Horses None
Horses are in the clear here too, since the shrub is listed as non-toxic to them. A mouthful of the leaves carries no risk of poisoning.
Rabbits Safe
Nothing in the plant can poison a rabbit, so a low stem within nibbling reach is no cause for worry. The bitter flowers usually keep them from making a meal of it anyway.
Livestock Safe
Cattle, goats, and sheep can graze along a pasture edge planted with forsythia with no poisoning to fear.
Birds Safe
Birds are welcome to perch among the branches or peck at the leaves, flowers, and stems, since none of it holds any toxic threat to them.
People Safe
Plant it without a second thought where children play, and prune it bare-handed if you like. Nothing on the shrub will poison anyone, though a quick hand-wash after any garden work is always a kind habit.
No special handling required; the flowers are bitter, which discourages nibbling. Wash hands after pruning as a general practice.
Varieties
Most forsythia you will find for the garden is this same hybrid, yet the named cultivars vary in size, hardiness, and just how freely they flower. A handful are well worth knowing as you choose.
Lynwood (Lynwood Gold)
An upright favorite that has earned its place as a garden standard, lined evenly with bright yellow flowers from top to bottom of every stem.
Spectabilis
The grand performer of the bunch, wrapping each branch in a thick, deep yellow blanket of bloom.
Beatrix Farrand
A spirited, fast-growing pick that opens large flowers in a rich canary yellow.
Northern Sun
A gentle, dependable choice for cold gardens, hardy to about zone 4, growing near 10 feet tall and holding its flower buds through bitter winters.
Gold Tide
A low, easygoing spreader that settles in as groundcover or steadies a bank or slope.
Companions
Forsythia pairs well with early bloomers that pick up where its yellow leaves off, and poorly with anything trying to grow in the shade beneath its dense canopy.
Plant near
Daffodils: Yellow daffodils bloom at the same time and echo the forsythia's early-spring color at ground level.
Lilac: Lilac flowers shortly after forsythia, extending the shrub-border bloom season; both share full-sun, well-drained conditions.
Keep apart
Turfgrass directly beneath the canopy: The dense arching canopy and surface roots shade and compete with lawn grass, which struggles under the shrub.
How to propagate
Few shrubs are this forgiving to multiply, so do not be shy about trying. Forsythia roots from cuttings or simply layers itself wherever a branch leans down to the soil, and before long your one plant has become several.
Stem cuttingsEasy
Late spring to summer · 4 to 8 weeks to root
This is a forgiving plant to start, so do not worry about getting it perfect. Snip softwood cuttings in late spring or early summer, or take semi-hardwood cuttings a bit later in the year, and most of them will quietly send out roots within 4 to 8 weeks.
LayeringEasy
Spring through summer · One growing season to root
The shrub almost does this one for you, since its arching branches root on their own wherever they rest on the soil. Pin a low branch down any time from spring through summer, let it settle for a full growing season, then cut it free of the parent and lift your new plant to its home.
Myths
Forsythia should be cut back hard in late winter to make it bloom better.
It feels right to give it a hard late-winter haircut, but that timing takes away the flower buds, which were set on last year's wood. A big cut at the wrong moment thins or erases the spring color you were hoping for. Wait and prune just after the flowers fade, and next year's buds stay safe and sound.
Forsythia berries and flowers are poisonous to pets and children.
You can set this worry down for good. The ASPCA lists Forsythia, or Golden Bells, as non-toxic to dogs, cats, and horses, and it is treated as safe around children as well. The plant holds no toxic principles at all, and its bitter flowers gently discourage browsing on their own.