Coppiced Forsythia Flopping Over

3 years ago

last modified: 3 years ago

I coppiced (cut down to 6") a Forsythia in early spring before leaf out. Within 2 months new growth was waist high. Now it is flopping over, much of it actually laying on the ground. It did rain a lot here but I don't think that is so much the issue as that it seemed to have grown too fast and the new growth is very weak wood. What I want to know is should I recut the new growth now half way to get it to strengthen up and straighten up? Or should I try to stake it? Pretty difficult since the shrub is enormous. I know you are not supposed to fertilize a recently coppiced shrub but I fear lawn fertilizer may have been the culprit here. Any advice appreciated. Thanks.

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Comments (12)

lindac92
3 years ago
Why did you hack it back like that? The poor bush has this huge root system trying to put out enough green to make energy to sustain it.
If you want to renew an over grown shrub, cut about 1/3 of it down to the ground in the spring or early winter, and do that every year for 3 years....cutting only old growth the second and third years. But it's done....sooo.
I would cut about 1/3 of those soft floppy branches back by about half....don't cut all to the same height but vary it. Hopefully those shorter branches will hold up the floppy ones without cutting off all of next spring's blooms.
floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
3 years ago
Some Forsythias are lax in habit and naturally grow in a fountain shape. But coppicing in early spring is an unusual way of treating a Forsythia and would indeed promote fast growth.

Can you show us a picture of the shrub so we can get some idea of the problem?
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I've had good luck training a couple of normally huge shrubs into decent-looking standards. Since my growing space is at a premium, I need all the space I can get. Both of these plants were trained to a single stem, and it's minor Spring work to keep them that way. The tops are pruned back and coppiced, and by end of Summer, will have 2-3 foot branches. Still allows me plenty of growing space underneath them. The forsythia does sprout side branches, but they can be easily rubbed off while new. They both need staking, especially once they grow longer branches. Forsythia 'Ford Freeway', trained into a standard. About 10 years old. Eleutheroccus variegated, as a standard. About 8 years old.
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I don't know why one would flop and the other not. You can stake the canes up at the angle you see in the plant you like, and then cut them back by one-third to one-half after blooming, so they can stand up. They will grow thicker and stiffer by the month. You may be fertilizing too much. This is a vigorous shrub rose that can take care of itself. One feeding a year should be plenty unless you have sandy soil.
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I dug up two Lady Banksia roses as the huge roots were undermining our fence and our house! Those ladies are STRONG! I'm preparing to shovel prune my Knock Out roses in the future. I've planted crepe myrtles along my cottage fence. When those provide enough shade in the cottage garden, then I'm digging out the KOs because the Japanese Beetle fight makes the roses not worth it anymore. Nepeta note -- I have 'Six Hills Giant' and 'Walkers Low'. Of the two, the Six Hills is fabulous, but Walkers Low has never put on as good a show or shape as the Six Hills. Both are loved by bees and they'd be terribly upset with me if I got rid of those. That said, I have the space for them, too. After more than 90 days of temperatures over 90 degrees last summer and the fact that we are already in SEVERE DROUGHT here, I've made the decision to not add any new varieties of plants to the garden. I will only increase numbers of existing plants that sailed through the heat unscathed -- agastache, salvia, Russian sage, flax, buddleia, lavender, stachys, gaillardia, coneflowers, sedum, coreopsis and shastas. I'm already having to water the garden to try to keep my spring flower seedlings growing. It's so dry! Cameron
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Multiple different kinds of smaller growing forsythias are on the general market now. The days of the kinds that produce a 10 ft. fountain of growth being pretty much all there is are over. Apart from it cutting part of the bloom off shearing forsythias not situated in formal layouts and settings is a bad idea because it makes them out of context, same as shearing any other kind of shrub or tree not part of a geometric design. Low maintenance mantra is dominant in the market for new landscaping here these days. At the same time formal shearing of existing informal plantings on both commercial and residential properties has become pandemic. The way I see it companies doing this are mowing the lawns and mowing everything else as well. In keeping with this a decades old informal garden across the street from me has been getting maintenance sheared for some years now by company current owners hired. Before that previous occupants had some of that done also, but more here and there - resulting for instance in what should now be a Stewartia pseudocamellia of some height and presence being instead a tubby, flat-topped tuft of whips like a giant fez. And so on, throughout the property. Perhaps an assumption that formal shearing is a normal maintenance routine practiced in all settings is a lot of what is behind many requests for new installations being low maintenance.
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ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
3 years ago
a pic would be helpful
callirhoe123
3 years ago
A picture would help.
gardengal48 (PNW Z8/9)
3 years ago
It takes time for the wood - new stem growth - to ripen and become firm. Cutting back again now is not going to help.

I guess my primary question is why did you decide to coppice it? That is not a common approach with forsythia.
lovetogarden
Original Author
3 years ago
The reason I did it was because it was way overgrown, had been poorly pruned by the previous owner where it's shape was unnatural, and hadn't flowered in years. It looked like a bunch of dead stems attached to numerous trunks. It also had a severe case of forsythia gall disease. This is not the first forsythia I've coppiced. I have a book of pruning that recommends it. Right after flowering, but before it puts out new leaves. I've had great success with it on other plants too. 3 Smoke shrubs that looked like they've seen better days. So bad, I seriously thought of just having them pulled out. I coppiced them and they are gorgeous now. And 2 years ago I coppiced a variegated dogwood shrub. It's gorgeous now too. I didn't take a picture, but I'll get out of there tomorrow and take some to post.
lovetogarden
Original Author
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
floral uk, when is the best time to prune a forsythia? The book I have said to do it right after flowering but before it leaf's out. On this site some people recommended that too. I live in a cold climate were I can't even prune a rose before it goes dormant. I've lost too many roses doing that in the fall.
floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
3 years ago
Right after flowering, as you say. But pruning does not equal coppicing. Indeed a healthy Forsythia doesn’t really need much pruning at all, if any.

If your Forsythia was indeed in a very poor state then coppicing would be ok but you shouldn’t be surprised by the vigorous regrowth. That’s what coppicing is intended to do.

Since Forsythia is so easy to grow from cuttings and grows so fast if your shrub is really in such a poor state it might be better to start again.
lovetogarden
Original Author
3 years ago
Floral_uk, this plant not only looked like it was dead, but was on the verge of dying. To start over would be an impossibility since the root mass is huge. The plant is a good 2' around if not more. There is no way I would be able to dig that out before replacing it with a new plant. I think I just might try to stake it up until the new growth develops some strength.
ken_adrian Adrian MI cold Z5
3 years ago
whatever .... you acted.. and it made you happy ... move on ...

take a length of twine or stout string.. and tie all the floppers altogether upright .. loosely .... and once they get some strength to them.. release them ...

there is no reason you cant guide it to its future ...

Fs grow like weeds.. and i would NEVER fert one ... and if you did such back in time.. that might be why it is outgrowing its ability to hold itself up ... who knows ... or a lack of full sun ...

you will have to try hard to kill this thing.. and even if you did.. they root in like 15 mins.. if not just sticking a small branch right in the soil and ignoring it ... [that presumes you have the foresight to root some before you somehow manage to kill it .. lol]

i agree a pic might be helpful

ken
floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
3 years ago
I wasn’t suggesting you dig it up. I was suggesting you take some cuttings as insurance. FWIW 2 feet circumference is not large at all for a Forsythia. Two feet diameter would still be small. I was thinking it would be much bigger. We really need to see a picture of this thing as it’s very hard to imagine what the issues are otherwise.
lovetogarden
Original Author
3 years ago
Hi, floral_uk, I didn't measure it. I was going by what I thought. I have to take a picture. Couldn't get out there today because it was pouring rain here all day. Will post a picture tomorrow.

Coppiced Forsythia Flopping Over

Comments (12)

lindac92

floral_uk z.8/9 SW UK

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Coppiced Forsythia Flopping Over

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