Forsythia. 33 



FORSYTHIA. 



THE forsythias, coming from China and Japan, be- 

 long to the order Oleacece, and have long been in 

 cultivation in English gardens, the name of the 

 genus having been applied in the last century, in honor of 

 William Forsyth, the king's gardener at Kensington for 

 many years. There are but few species or varieties known 

 to us in cultivation, but all that are thus employed prove 

 to be charming plants, and of especial worth because of 

 their season of flowering and the situations which they 

 may be made to occupy to advantage. The flowers are 

 solitary, bright yellow, and very numerous, and so dis- 

 tributed along the branches as to often cover the entire 

 bush. These are produced on the wood of the previous 

 year's growth, and it sometimes occurs that people who do 

 not appreciate this fact prune their plants in winter, thus 

 removing nearly all the flowering wood, and then complain 

 that their forsythias do not meet their anticipations. 

 These plants need to be severely cut back each year, but 

 it should be done at the close of their flowering season, 

 which is before the foliage fully puts out rather than after. 

 Nearly all the wood of the year preceding should be cut 

 away, and the knife may be used without fear of doing 

 harm, as new branches will quickly take the places of 

 those removed. All the forsythias are rapid growers, and 

 the long, slender branches, newly formed, carry foliage suf- 

 ficiently attractive to justify the highest expectations in 

 seeking a desirable plant of its proportions. When occa- 

 sion requires, the shrub may be trained on a wall or fence 

 and made to cover a considerable space. It is equally 



