365 Urban Species. #091: Forsythia

[urbpan]

Urban species #091: Forsythia Forsythia x intermedia

One source I consulted for this article described forsythia, more than once, as "overused." I feel that it's kind of a shame to refer to a living thing with this term, but I also tend to agree. But you can't deny, in early spring, it's nice to see the profuse sprays of yellow flowers that this shrub produces.

There are seven species of Forsythia (one of many cultivated plants with no common name, referred to by its Genus), but a hybrid of two of them, F. suspensa and F. viridissima is what we see most often in the city. All forsythias are native to Asia, and came to North America at the turn of the last century. Now they are standard fare for Easter decorations, and have naturalized in many places. The yard of the house I grew up in, in the Pioneer Valley area, there are several large forsythia bushes, some of which formed tepee-like clubhouses. They were hardy enough to withstand vigorous cutting and replanting, as when my brother intended to create a kind of courtyard with them.

Forsythia shrubs provide shelter for birds and rodents, but do not provide much in the way of food for native wildlife. Forsythia fruit and seeds are used in traditional Chinese medicine, but i've never seen anyone collecting them (unlike gingko and burdock--two other urban plant species with herbal roles). The value of forsythia is almost entirely aesthetic. It proclaims, "Spring is here, no question!"




following photos by cottonmanifesto

Comments

[zipotle.livejournal.com]

Mom (jokingly) says that forsythia is stupid because it flowers at the very first sign of spring, when it's still going to be icy and there aren't even any LEAVES out yet.

I love forsythia for that reason though. It's hopeful.

[brush-rat.livejournal.com]

Yes, and if I'd stayed there to protect them, it would be a lovely courtyard indeed.

[drocera.livejournal.com]

My forsythia has NOT bloomed for the past 2 years! I wonder what's going on with that. Any ideas?

[artemii.livejournal.com]

global warming

[vampyrusgirl.livejournal.com]

The Colobus monkeys? LOVE forsythia. They eat it like I eat smartfood - which is to say they grab it and shove it in their mouths like there's no tomorrow.

[artemii.livejournal.com]

forsythia is unbelievably rampant. it's one of those woody plants that will root wherever its branch tips land. when i moved into my last place, the garden had not been taken care of really at all by the previous residents, and i found many spots where the forsythia next door had rooted itself into my garden using its branch tips (i'm making it sound like it was sentient). it also grows an unbelievable rate per year if left to its own devices.

if the weather is to its liking in autumn, it will bloom a second time, though typically with less blooms than it has in spring.