Forsythia ∗ The 10 best care tips and how to cut properly

Plant forsythia properly

The ideal time window for planting forsythia opens in March. The soil should be completely thawed and there should be no more severe frosts to fear. You proceed professionally in these steps:

• Place the still potted young plant in a bucket with water
• Dig a planting pit with twice the volume of the root ball
• Enrich the excavation with compost, Horn shavings(€ 32.93 at Amazon *) or guano granules
• the Forsythia Pot and plant exactly as deep as in the nursery pot

Press the soil down with your hands without compacting the soil too much and pour plenty of water. A mulch layer made of leaves, lawn clippings or bark mulch is particularly advantageous for the growing phase.
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Care tips

In order to elicit its golden yellow flowers from a forsythia, a clear care program is required. The most important points at a glance:

• Water thoroughly in summer drought
• Water potted plants regularly when the substrate is dry
• Organically every 3-4 weeks from April to August fertilize with compost or nettle manure
• Thinning out the entire shrub thoroughly every year in May / June
• Cut into shape every 2-3 years immediately after flowering

Gold lilacs in the bucket receive winter protection so that the root ball does not freeze through. If you chose autumn as the planting time, we recommend piling the young forsythia with leaf soil, straw or coniferous twigs in the first winter. The shoots receive a hood made of jute or Garden fleece. Established plants bravely face the winter without additional protection.
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Which location is suitable?

Forsythia develops its optimum in a sunny, warm location. Since its character is characterized by good-natured flexibility, the spring beauty also tolerates a partially shaded to shady location. On the other hand, under reduced lighting conditions, a somewhat reduced floral pattern and a loose habit can be expected.
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The correct planting distance

The selected variety and the intended use define the planting distance. Experience has verified the following values:

• Varieties with a stature height of 300 cm: plant spacing 50 cm for cut hedges, 100 cm for open flower hedges
• Varieties with a stature height of 150 cm: planting distance 35 cm for cut hedges, 70 cm for open flower hedges

If the forsythia acts as a solitary, a distance of at least 120 cm to neighboring plants should be maintained.

What soil does the plant need?

Forsythia thrives in any good garden soil that is ideally rich in nutrients and humus. A low to moderate lime content is accepted as well as a slight tendency towards an acidic pH value. The flowering shrub should not be confronted with waterlogging or soil compaction.

What is the best time to plant?

Young plants in the container can be planted during the entire growing season. You create the best starting conditions for a forsythia if you choose early spring as the planting time. In this case, the ornamental shrub has enough time to establish itself on the site before winter arrives.
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When is the flowering time?

The flowering period extends from the beginning of March to the end of April / beginning of May. The flower unfolds in its most beautiful splendor on the three-year-old shoots. If you don't want to wait long for the gold bells, cut some shoots on the 4th. December off to them as Barbara branches to use. Then you can look forward to the yellow flowers in the vase as early as Christmas.

Properly cut forsythia

The linchpin of professional care is the pruning. The timing plays just as important a role as the cut itself. You will get a forsythia in top form if the flowering shrub is pruned every 2-3 years. How to do it right:

• Prune forsythia after flowering
• Choose a day with dry, overcast weather
• Shorten shoots that are too long by up to two thirds
• Place the scissors 2-3 mm above a sleeping eye
• Cut inward, intersecting and rubbing branches

Although a topiary is only required every few years, the thinning takes place every spring. Once the golden lilac has faded, cut off any dead wood at the base. Make space in the crown for young shoots when older branches threaten to overgrow them. In the end, light and air should reach all regions of a forsythia and the shrub should present itself in a harmonious silhouette.

Pour forsythia

As a shallow root, the forsythia quickly suffers from a lack of water in summer drought. If the natural rainfall does not provide enough moisture, water the shrub in good time. In the narrowly limited volume of substrate in a bucket, water the ornamental wood as soon as the top 3-4 centimeters of the soil have dried.

Fertilize forsythia properly

The nutrient balance of a forsythia functions in good garden soil without the use of fertilizers. Are you with that anyway wheelbarrow full of compost in the garden, the flowering shrub will gladly accept a portion of the organic fertilizer between April and August. A commercially available liquid fertilizer fulfills this task in the bucket.
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Diseases

You will rarely have to complain about illnesses from forsythia - if at all. If there are health problems, these result from neglect in care. A weakened shrub is prone to fungal and bacterial infections, such as mildew, the leaves and shoot wilt or the Monilia Peak drought. Cut out diseased shoots immediately and put the previous care program to the test. As a rule, it is not necessary to use chemical pesticides, because there are plenty of biological pesticides available for the hobby garden.
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Pests

When the forsythia blooms, most of the garden's pests are still in their starting blocks. The only exception are the leaf bugs, as they hibernate as adult insects. The winged parasites are 5-10 mm in size and resemble aphids. If you fight leaf bugs with the classic soft soap solution when they first appear, there will be no major impairment of this year's flowering.

Overwinter

The forsythia is completely hardy as soon as it is sufficiently rooted in the bed. No special protection is required from the second year of standing at the latest. An exception applies to young plants that are planted in autumn and to golden lilacs in pots. How to overwinter the bushes in an exemplary way:

• Wrap young plants loosely with jute tapes or garden fleece before the first frost
• Pile up the root area with straw, leaf soil, compost or fir leaves
• Wrap the bucket thickly with bubble wrap and place it on a wooden block
• Cover the substrate with Sawdust, Wood wool or leaves

If winter comes with clear frost, a shallow-rooted forsythia quickly suffers from drought. If the snow cannot be seen while Godfather Frost dominates, water the ornamental shrub on a frost-free day.

Forsythia multiply

One of the many sympathetic traits of forsythia is uncomplicated reproduction. If you would like more specimens of the cheerful yellow spring bloomer, you can choose from these methods:

• Cuttings: cut in July / August, defoliate the lower half and plant in the poor substrate
• Sinker: pull annual shoots to the ground, dig in the middle part and let them take root until the next year

In contrast to the pure wild species, the garden forsythia rarely develops capsule fruits with seeds. the sowing for offspring is therefore out of the question or is associated with a significantly higher effort.
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How do I transplant properly?

A forsythia benefits from its natural resistance when the ornamental shrub is replanted. In order for the wood to take root quickly at the new location, we recommend this procedure:

• After flowering, cut back the forsythia by half to two thirds
• Remove all dead wood, poor and damaged branches
• In the radius of the growth height, root strands that are too long all around with the spade cut off
• With the help of a Digging fork loosen the root ball and pry it out of the earth

At the new garden square, dig a pit with twice the volume of the bale. You optimize the excavation with compost and horn shavings. Place the forsythia in the middle of the pit and muddy the bush. Do not plant the wood any deeper than at the previous location, otherwise it will take 1-2 years for the first flowering after transplanting.
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Is Forsythia Toxic?

Due to its content of saponins and glycosides, forsythia is one of the weakly poisonous plants. Therefore, wear gloves for all planting and maintenance work. Small children and pets should not be within easy reach of Lilac without supervision.
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Forsythia does not bloom

If the longed-for bloom does not appear, the forsythia demonstrates its displeasure with incorrect care in this way. These causes are hidden behind it:

• Cut back in autumn
• Waterlogging or drought stress
• Belated ground frosts

Gold bells in the tub will not bloom if they are not protected in winter. Due to the exposed position of the root ball, it freezes through in severe frost. The subsequent thaw causes the stressed tissue cells to burst, so that the flower shoots are no longer supplied with water and nutrients.
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Brown leaves

Brown leaves on a forsythia are considered a symptom of shoot rot. This is a bacterial disease that can be recognized in the form of brown spots that spread steadily. In the further course the leaves and shoots turn dark brown to black. Immediately cut the shrub back into the healthy wood.

Yellow leaves

If the leaves of a forsythia turn yellow in the middle of the season, this damage pattern points to the Monilia peak drought. This fungal infection first affects the flowers and spreads to the foliage as soon as it sprouts on the bush. In the absence of effective control agents, only radical pruning can save the flowering wood. Please burn the clippings or dispose of them in household waste to prevent further spread in the garden.

The most beautiful varieties

• Dresden early spring: the earliest forsythia ever with large, deep yellow flowers from mid-February
• Lynwood Gold: Favorite variety of hobby gardeners thanks to bright yellow flowers and a powerful habit of up to 300 cm in height
• Gold magic: the noble forsythia with 4 cm large flowers and a robust frost tolerance up to - 8 degrees
• Minigold: a splendid specimen for the bucket, since a height of 150 cm is not exceeded
• Maree d’Or: scores with compact growth up to 100 cm and acts as a lush ground cover with a width of 150 cm