More about Forsythia
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The Story
Forsythia is a deciduous shrub , in the Olive family, that flowers before the branches leaf out….it is an outdoor bush that grows from 3’ to 10’ tall depending on variety. Like cherry, plum and other blooming branches, forsythia can be cut early (Mid January to March) and forced indoors for a long lasting burst of yellow decorative blossoms.
What you need:
This makes for one robust 3 foot tall arrangement big enough for a baby grand piano or 2-3 tall, slender ones say for a long console table …For one arrangement, you will need vase/container that are at least 14-16” tall and 6” diameter to fit all the branches or an assortment that combines to accommodate all the branches.
Care
After cutting your forsythia to desired length, make sure the stems are adequately prepped for drinking water. I find it easiest to pound the bottom 3-4” of stem with a hammer…not too much, but just enough to crack the stem a few times. Other people who are neater than I am (and have more tensile strength than I) use clippers and make neat little 1-2″ cross cuts in the bottom of the stem. Others delicately shave the bark from the bottom 2-3” just below the bark down to the green. These various ways of providing water do so by exposing the xylem tubes (aka the plants water tubes) which in woody stems is just below the bark.
Given that the stems are going to look messy I like to arrange my blooming branches in either an opaque vessel like the one in the photo (available from www.potterybarn.com) or leaf line a tall clear glass vase cylinder which is why we include tropical leaves, at no charge
& Performance
Your forsythia blooms should fully mature and thrive for about 10 days assuming … you DO NOT put into direct sunlight, DO NOT keep in a room not hotter than 68 and NOT near or on top of a TV, Furnace or other hot appliance. The blossoms shed so there is some dusting up that needs doing if you want your surfaces spotless. Personally I do not mind a few fallen blossoms but after 10 dropped petals or so, I clean them up.
Change the water after a week.
After the blossoms fall off, bright green leaves emerge which I also enjoy especially since I know they are ‘cleaning’ the air…but if you are going to keep the branches around thoroughly clean the vase, and recondition the stems as necessary.
