Caring For
Forsythias
|
|
Forsythia are very low-maintenance shrubs and
require no specialist care. Just follow the few calendar items below
and you will have a forsythia to be proud of.
The dates are adjusted
for your home town if you have previously set it, if not
click here to go and set all
GardenAction dates for your area. |
| From
late April to
late May
|
Prune
your forsythia. See the section on pruning below for more details. The
best time is immediately after the flowers have faded. |
| In
early May
|
Feed
your forsythia. A mulch with well-rotted compost is the best solution. If
you have no compost, scatter two handfuls of bonemeal around the plant and
gently fork it into the soil. |
|
mid October
|
Plant
your new forsythia bush. At this time of year the soil will be moist but
still have some of the summer warmth left in it. |
|
late December
|
Cut a
few twigs of forsythia and bring it indoors. The warmth will force the
flowers to come out in a week or so. A touch of spring even in mid-winter! |
Planting Forsythia
Bought online or from a nursery, your
forsythia will probably come in a 3 litre pot. Dig a hole about the
depth of the pot and about twice as wide. Mix a handful of bonemeal
into the dug up soil.
Remove the forsythia from the pot. the way to do this
is to place a hand over the soil in the pot with fingers either side
of the main stem. Turn the plant upside down and ease it out of the
pot. If the plant has become root bound, gently tease out some of the
roots from the base of the root ball. Place the forsythia in the hole.
The top of the soil of the root ball should be level
with the garden soil. Adjust the height of the plant by adding soil
under it if needed. Fill in the hole around the plant with the dug
soil. Firm the soil down as you fill in the hole to ensure the
forsythia isn't blown over in strong wind. Water well to consolidate
the soil
Pruning Forsythia
Timing is the important factor here. Forsythia flowers on branches
grown in the previous calendar year. To give it the maximum time to
grow those flowers prune it immediately the flowers have faded.
Forsythia grows at about 60cm (2 feet) every year. In
addition to this, it can be cut back to 30cm (1 ft) from the ground
and, as long as there are a couple of buds on the stem, it will grow
back with even more speed! Given these two factors, don't be shy
pruning forsythia.
To maintain a shape (a hedge for
example), prune around 60cm (2 feet) every year. The same goes for
forsythia growing as a specimen shrub. Prune to the shape and size you
want. No need to prune the branches at any particular place, anywhere
will do!
CLICK HERE FOR
NEXT FORSYTHIA PAGE
(how to propagate a forsythia, standard forsythias)
CLICK HERE FOR
PREVIOUS FORSYTHIA PAGE
Gardening Advice Center
Share with us your gardening experience!
Name: colin
E-mail: Private
Date posted: August 15, 2011 - 06:37 am
Message: I have a bush which is approx 40 years old,& iam concerned that the roots may have travelled to wards my main water waste pipes from the house.
How far in these years would the roots have travelled??
thanks.
Name: Linda
E-mail: Private
Date posted: July 14, 2011 - 11:42 am
Message: I have 2 forsythias and I cut them back after blooming. This year they have grown 4 to 5 feet since then and I'd like to trim them again. Can I do that and still have blooms next year?
Name: carol
E-mail: Private
Date posted: November 28, 2010 - 01:39 pm
Message: Hi have just bought a forsthia plant from the internet, as it's only about 8 - 10 inches high, can I plant it outdoors yet or would I be better keeping it indoors until it starts to get a bit milder. Thanks for any input you can give me.
Name: Guy Gagnon
E-mail: gagnon76@comcast.net
Date posted: September 17, 2010 - 02:38 pm
Message: I recently planted about 20 or so forsythia plants. The plants that are getting full sun and partial sun have already sprouted shoots but several of these plants get no sun at all and are doing nothing. My question is, what do I hsve to do to get them started. It's only been a few weeks, should I just wait it out? Will providing artificial light for a few hours a day do it? If so what type of light is appropriate?
Is their another solution? Thank you for your consideration in this regard.
|
GardenAction recommend CROCUS as your online supplier of Hellebores. We have personally tested many online
gardening suppliers and have found out from personal experience that CROCUS offer excellent value for money, reliability and security. When you visit the CROCUS site for your Hellebore, enter 'hellebore' in their search box (shown as 'or find me info on') to see the full range of hellebores or enter the specific name of the Hellebore your are searching for. Good luck with your new Hellebore! |
