Gaenari (Korean goldenbell tree)
Forsythia koreana · Oleaceae · 개나리
How to spot it
Identified by arching branches, opposite leaves (three-lobed on vigorous shoots), and yellow tubular flowers that bloom before the leaves.
Look
- Leaves
- Egg-shaped to lanceolate, 3 to 12 cm long and shiny; the margin is toothed above the middle or smooth. Leaves on vigorous shoots are often deeply three-lobed.
- Flowers
- Bright yellow flowers appear in March to April before the leaves, one to three in the leaf axils; the corolla is 1.5 to 2.5 cm long and deeply four-lobed.
- Fruit
- The capsule is flat and egg-shaped, 15 to 20 mm long, with wart-like bumps; the seeds are winged and ripen in September.
- Bark
- One-year-old twigs are green but gradually turn gray-brown, with distinct lenticels.
Where it grows
- Native to
- A plant endemic to Korea.
- Ecology
- Grows in shade or sun and is tolerant of cold, dryness, pollution and alkaline soil, so it adapts anywhere in the country and overwinters even below -20°C.