Honey bees get nectar and pollen from this plant.

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This hybrid species of two Chinese species, the Greenstem x the Weeping Forsythias, was discovered as a seedling in the Gottingen Botanical Garden in Germany by a botanical director of H. Zabel in 1878. He named the hybrid species in 1885. It was introduced to the Arnold Arboretum in Boston in 1887. This hybrid is not as bent over and weeping as the one parent, but it has enough weeping in its habit to have branches touch the ground and root. It is a fast growing shrub that becomes unkempt and overly densely twiggy in time and has to be pruned heavily after blooming. So far, it has been the most commonly planted forsythia species in the US. It does not get good fall color. The cultivar of 'Lynwood Gold' discovered in Northern Ireland is the most common cultivar with 'Spring Glory' being the second. There are some newer cultivars that stay low of about 4 feet high instead of the usual 8 to 10 feet. The flower buds are not as cold hardy as the vegetative buds, and if the temperature falls below minus 15 below zero, the flower buds are killed. It has been planted a lot in USDA Zone 5 over the decades, but does not bloom well about 1/3 to 2/3rds of the time there. Newer hybrid forsythias are better for Zone 5.

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