Forsythia Branches How to Arrange for a Spring Bouquet

Forsythia Branches How to Arrange a Spring Bouquet

I live in Maine where spring eases in slowly most years, armed with heavy rains and temperatures well below the 60’s. That mean supplementing my bouquets with flowering tree branches, including forsythia.

I’m not wild about yellow flowers but after a long Maine winter, anything flowering is welcome.

How to Arrange Forsythia Branches

Supplies:

1 vase or jar–I used a quart mason jar

12 to 18 forsythia branches in varying lengths

3 daffodils, tulips or other spring flowers as a focal point

Directions:

When you’re snipping forsythia branches–assuming you’re snipping your own–carry a pail of water to drop the branches in so they don’t dry out before they go in the vase.

Speaking of snipping your own-if you don’t have your own bush–check for stems at your florist or your supermarket floral department. I’ve found branches at both this spring.

I start the bouquet by arranging the longer branches in the vase first to cast outward and then tuck in the shorter branches.

Add the three flower stems and voila, a spring bouquet.

Forsythia Care

I made this bouquet a few weeks ago. Now it is May 21 and my yellow shrub has just about stopped blooming, which means its time to prune it. You want to prune early flowering shrubs after they bloom. That’s because those shrubs form their flower buds on the previous year’s growth. So you want to prune right after bloom time.

Don’t hack away at your shrub. Forsythias are supposed to be an arching shape. Cut out the oldest canes and leave the others alone.

 History

Forsythia was so named in 1804 for William Forsyth, director of the royal garden at Kensington.

The shrub didn’t make its way to the U.S. until 1908.

An excerpt from an article from Harvard University’s Arnold Arboretum about the space and proper pruning forsythia shrubs need.

Have you tried forcing forsythia during late winter or early spring? Here are some dates to bloom depending on when you cut the branches:

Do you have any flowering trees or bushes that you use to make bouquets? Tell us in the comments.