Could it be Corylopsis spicata, winter hazel? Mine is about to bloom. I think it should propogate from cuttings, but I've never tried it. AHS manual says sow fresh seed, layer in fall, or graft in winter.

It may be Edgeworthia 'Winter Gold' -- it grows about 6x6 and is very fragrant. Paperbush is the common name. It puts on the big show this time of year. I got my supplier's updated inventory and noticed that there are some available now. They weren't available last year when I was looking for one.

My vote would be for Corylopsis and not Edgeworthia. The branching structure of Edgeworthia is very distinctive. There used to be a huge one at the start of the perennial border at the JC Raulston arboretum before the renovation. It would typically bloom in January.

I think Corylopsis spicata usually blooms in April -- but, we've been having springtime weather, so it may just be blooming very early.

I think it might be Winter Honeysuckle (Lonicera fragrantissima). I can't really tell if the flowers are small and white or there are some other kinds of flowers. Anyway, if it is winter honeysuckle just stick some of the lower branches down into the soil and they will root and you can dig them up and move them.
And by the way, it's my very favorite thing in my yard!
Denise

that was my first thought, too, but quirk just said she planted a winter honeysuckle, so you'd think she'd recognize that. i don't think edgeworthia- the blooms aren't that distinctive shape & size. my vote is corylopsis, too. there's a gorgeous one in JCRA towards the back that i noticed for the first time last yr. not sure if it's blooming now or not though . wish there was a closeup of the flowers. it'd be so much easier to i.d.

Thanks for all the suggestions, but the tree in the photo is about 20 feet tall. Corylopsis is only 4ft. Let's keep trying.

i know the one i saw at JCRA was bigger than 4 ft, but it wasn't 20, either. why don't you post a closeuup of the flowers and bark?

My winter hazel is 10 ft and it's two years in my garden from a 5 gallon pot. Close up of flower will help I think.

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:554006}}

Southern Living says there are 4 Corylopsis species - 2 get to 15' (C. glabrescens & sinensis) and 2 to 4-8' (C. pauciflora & spicata), so it could be corylopsis...., probably glabrescens...

The winter honeysuckle I have has white flowers... And it has a number of green leaves still on it, esp. at the lower branches.

Edgeworthia has flowers that are in "bunches" that hang down, so probably not the plant in question...

I keep posting a response saying that I think it is Wintersweet but they never appear.... grrrrrrrrrrr maybe this time it will work

John made the right identification...Wintersweet (Chimonanthus praecox). Don't you love the fragrance! Sprouts easily from seed (if you can find them on the shrub in the fall). Best propagation method is layering.

I got two seedlings or rooted cuttings at the Raulston Arboretum last night. They had a lecture on cane crops and in addition to the normal plant giveaway door prizes (I won one) they had a few plants for sale - $5 each. The door prize plant was a brown colored podocarpus - I remarked that I would never know when it was dead! Anyway I am glad to get some Chimonathus for my yard (though it might take a while for these babies to get big enough to bloom) and I'm glad the arb is finally selling unusuall plants.