Forsythia | |
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Forsythia × intermedia | |
Scientific classification | |
Kingdom: | Plantae |
Clade: | Tracheophytes |
Clade: | Angiosperms |
Clade: | Eudicots |
Clade: | Asterids |
Order: | Lamiales |
Family: | Oleaceae |
Tribe: | Forsythieae |
Genus: | Forsythia Vahl |
Type species | |
Forsythia suspensa | |
Synonyms [1] | |
RangiumJuss. in G.-F.Cuvier |
Forsythia | |||||||||||||||||
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Traditional Chinese | 連翹 | ||||||||||||||||
Simplified Chinese | 连翘 | ||||||||||||||||
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Forsythia /fɔːrˈsɪθiə/ , /fɔːrˈsaɪθiə/ [2] is a genus of flowering plants in the olive family Oleaceae. There are about 11 species,mostly native to eastern Asia,but one native to southeastern Europe. [1] Forsythia –also one of the plant's common names –is named after William Forsyth. [3] [4] [5]
Forsythia are deciduous shrubs typically growing to a height of 1–3 m (3 ft 3 in –9 ft 10 in) and,rarely,up to 6 m (20 ft) with rough grey-brown bark. The leaves are borne oppositely and are usually simple,though sometimes trifoliate with a basal pair of small leaflets;they range between 2 and 10 cm (0.79 and 3.94 in) in length and,rarely,up to 15 cm (5.9 in),with a margin that is serrated or entire (smooth). Twigs may be hollow or chambered,depending on the species. [6]
The flowers are produced in the early spring before the leaves,bright yellow with a deeply four-lobed flower,the petals joined only at the base. These become pendent in rainy weather thus shielding the reproductive parts. The fruit is a dry capsule,containing several winged seeds. [3] [7]
There is a long-standing belief that forsythia flowers produce lactose,but lactose occurs only very rarely in natural sources other than milk,and attempts to find lactose in forsythia have been unsuccessful. [8]
The genus is named after William Forsyth (1737–1804),a Scottish botanist who was a royal head gardener and a founding member of the Royal Horticultural Society. [9]
The following species of Forsythia have been documented: [3] [4] [5] [7] [10] [11] [12] [ excessive citations ]
A genetic study [14] does not fully match the traditionally accepted species listed above,and groups the species in four clades:(1) F. suspensa;(2) F. europaea—F. giraldiana;(3) F. ovata—F. japonica—F. viridissima;and (4) F. koreana—F. mandschurica—F. saxatilis. Of the additional species,F. koreana is usually cited as a variety of F. viridissima,and F. saxatilis as a variety of F. japonica; [15] the genetic evidence suggests they may be better treated as distinct species.
Forsythias are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including the brown-tail and Gothic moth.
Two species of forsythia are at the heart of the selected forms and garden hybrids:Forsythia suspensa and F. viridissima. "These two species are,as it were,the founder-members of the forsythia family" writes Alice Coats;they were the earliest species brought into Western gardens from the Far East and they have each played a role in the modern garden shrubs. [16]
Forsythia suspensa,the first to be noticed by a Westerner,was seen in a Japanese garden by the botanist-surgeon Carl Peter Thunberg,who included it (as a lilac) in his Flora Japonica 1784. Thunberg's professional connections lay with the Dutch East India Company,and F. suspensa reached Holland first,by 1833. In England,when it was being offered by Veitch Nurseries in Exeter at mid-century,it was still considered a rarity. Not all the varieties of suspensa are splaying and drooping,best seen hanging over a retaining wall;an erect form found by Fortune near Peking in 1861 was for a time classed as a species—F. fortunei. [16]
Forsythia viridissima,meanwhile,had overtaken it in European gardens. The Scottish plant-hunter Robert Fortune "discovered" it—in a mandarin garden of the coastal city of Chusan (Zhoushan)—before he ever saw it growing wild in the mountains in Zhejiang province. [16]
Forsythia ×intermedia,as its name suggests,is a hybrid of F. suspensa and F. viridissima,introduced in continental Europe about 1880. Repeated crosses of the same two parents have made reiterations of F. ×intermedia quite variable. A bud sport of a particularly showy (spectabilis) form is widely marketed as F. ×intermedia 'Lynwood Variety'. [16] This cultivar has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit, [17] as have F. ×intermedia Week End 'Courtalyn' [18] and F. Marée d'Or 'Courtasol'. [19]
About the time of the First World War further species were discovered by plant hunters in China:F. giraldian (found in Gansu,1910) and F. ovata (collected from seed in Korea by E.H. Wilson) have been particularly useful as seed parents in 20th-century American crosses. [16]
This section needs additional citations for verification .(March 2020) |
Forsythia are early spring-flowering shrubs with yellow blooms, [20] often seen in private gardens, public landscaping works and parks—notably during Eastertide), when some of the plants are nicknamed Easter Tree in honor of the coming spring. [21] Two species/hybrids are commonly cultivated for ornamental use, Forsythia × intermedia and F. suspensa . They are grown in several climates and gardening zones, prized for being tough and reliable perennial plants. F. × intermedia is the more commonly grown, smaller plant and has an upright habit with vivid flowers. F. suspensa is a large to very large shrub with paler blossoms, and can be grown in a weeping shape on banks. Many named garden cultivars can also be found. Budding Forsythia cuttings are frequently brought indoors, for their opening blooms, in the early spring. [7]
Vegetative propagation is usually achieved via cuttings, taken from green wood after flowering in late spring to early summer. Alternatively, cuttings may be taken between November and February, though this may reduce the flowering spectacle of the following spring. [22] Low-hanging boughs that touch the ground will often take root, adding to the total mass of the plant, but can be removed for transplanting. A common practice (known as layering) is to place a weight over a branch to keep it on the ground and, after it has rooted, to dig up the roots and cut the rooted part from the main branch; this can then be planted.
Forsythia suspensa is considered one of the 50 fundamental herbs in Chinese herbology. [23] Forsythia sticks are used to bow a Korean string instrument called ajaeng . [24]
In some regions, the plant may be known as Easter tree and the flowers as yellow bells.[ citation needed ] In Iran, the plant is known as "yellow Jasmine".
Syringa is a genus of 12 currently recognized species of flowering woody plants in the olive family or Oleaceae called lilacs. These lilacs are native to woodland and scrub from southeastern Europe to eastern Asia, and widely and commonly cultivated in temperate areas elsewhere.
Oleaceae, also known as the olive family or sometimes the lilac family, is a taxonomic family of flowering shrubs, trees, and a few lianas in the order Lamiales. It presently comprises 28 genera, one of which is recently extinct. The extant genera include Cartrema, which was resurrected in 2012. The number of species in the Oleaceae is variously estimated in a wide range around 700. The flowers are often numerous and highly odoriferous. The family has a subcosmopolitan distribution, ranging from the subarctic to the southernmost parts of Africa, Australia, and South America. Notable members include olive, ash, jasmine, and several popular ornamental plants including privet, forsythia, fringetrees, and lilac.
Dasiphora fruticosa is a species of hardy deciduous flowering shrub in the family Rosaceae, native to the cool temperate and subarctic regions of the northern hemisphere, often growing at high altitudes in mountains. Dasiphora fruticosa is still widely referenced in the horticultural literature under its synonym Potentilla fruticosa. Common names include shrubby cinquefoil, golden hardhack, bush cinquefoil, shrubby five-finger, widdy, kuril tea and tundra rose.
Camellia japonica, known as common camellia, or Japanese camellia, is a species of Camellia, a flowering plant genus in the family Theaceae. There are thousands of cultivars of C. japonica in cultivation, with many colors and forms of flowers. Despite its common name, it is native to China, not Japan. The cultivation of Camellia japonica also started in China. Its widespread cultivation can be traced back to the Song Dynasty, when 15 varieties of Camellia japonica were recorded in literature. It was later introduced to Japan. It grows in forests, at altitudes of around 300–1,100 metres (980–3,600 ft).
Weigela is a genus of between six and 38 species of deciduous shrubs in the family Caprifoliaceae, growing to 1–5 m (3–15′) tall. All are natives of eastern Asia. The genus is named after the German scientist Christian Ehrenfried Weigel.
Astilbe is a genus of 18 species of rhizomatous flowering plants within the family Saxifragaceae, native to mountain ravines and woodlands in Asia and North America. Some species are known by the common names false goat's beard and false spirea.
Abeliophyllum, the miseonnamu, Korean abeliophyllum, white forsythia, or Korean abelialeaf, is a monotypic genus of flowering plants in the olive family, Oleaceae. It consists of one species, Abeliophyllum distichumNakai, endemic to Korea, where it is endangered in the wild, occurring at only seven sites. It is related to Forsythia, but differs in having white, not yellow, flowers.
Stewartia pseudocamellia, also known as Korean stewartia, Japanese stewartia, or deciduous camellia, is a species of flowering plant in the family Theaceae, native to Japan and Korea.
Chaenomeles speciosa, the flowering quince, Chinese quince or Japanese quince, is a thorny deciduous or semi-evergreen shrub native to eastern Asia. It is taller than another commonly cultivated species, C. japonica, usually growing to about 2 m. The flowers are usually red, but may be white or pink. The fruit is a fragrant, hard pome that resembles a quince.
Anemone hepatica, the common hepatica, liverwort, liverleaf, kidneywort, or pennywort, is a species of flowering plant in the buttercup family Ranunculaceae, native to woodland in temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. This herbaceous perennial grows from a rhizome.
Hamamelis mollis, also known as Chinese witch hazel, is a species of flowering plant in the witch hazel family Hamamelidaceae, native to central and eastern China, in Anhui, Guangxi, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangxi, Sichuan, and Zhejiang.
Syringa reticulata, the Japanese tree lilac, is a species of flowering plant in the family Oleaceae native to eastern Asia, which is grown as an ornamental in Europe and North America.
Forsythia suspensa, commonly known as weeping forsythia or golden-bell, is a species of flowering plant in the family Oleaceae. It is native to China.
Hamamelis×intermedia, the hybrid witch hazel, is a flowering plant in the family Hamamelidaceae. It is a hybrid of garden origin between H. japonica and H. mollis. Its Latin name refers to its intermediate appearance between those two species.
Forsythia × intermedia, or border forsythia, is an ornamental deciduous shrub of garden origin.
Forsythia koreana, commonly called gaenari (Hangul:개나리) or Korean goldenbell tree, is a species in the olive family, Oleaceae. It grows to about 3 m (9.8 ft). The leaves are oval in shape, have teeth, and are 3–12 cm (1.2–4.7 in) long. The front of the leaf is dark green and the back is dark blue, but both sides are hairless.
Veronica ovata is a species of flowering plant in the family Plantaginaceae. It is native to eastern Asia, including eastern China, Korea, and Japan.
Forsythia viridissima, variously called the Chinese golden bell tree, green-stemmed forsythia, greenstem forsythia, and Korean forsythia, is a species of flowering plant in the genus Forsythia, native to southern China and South Korea, and introduced to Japan and the United States. It flowers about two weeks later than other forsythias. It may be of hybrid origin and is believed to be one of the parents of Forsythia × intermedia.
Forsythia europaea, commonly known as Albanian forsythia or European forsythia, is a species of flowering plant in the olive family, with a native range from Montenegro to northern Albania. It is the only species of Forsythia native to Europe; prior to its discovery in Albania in 1897, it was thought that all Forsythia were native to East Asia.
Forsythia ovata, the Korean forsythia or early forsythia, is a species of flowering plant in the family Oleaceae, native to the Korean Peninsula. An early bloomer, it is deer resistant, and hardy to −50 °F (−46 °C); USDA Hardiness zone 2a.
Yellow flowers appear before foliage in February or March and last through April or May.
Pruning should be done immediately after spring flowering; if done after mid-July, you will likely remove flower buds for the following spring. To rejuvenate an older plant, you can cut it back almost ground level.