Forsythia is a genus of flowering plants in the Oleaceae family, native to East Asia and Southeast Europe. They are leafy shrubs, 1-3 m tall. The tendrils have rough, grey-brown bark. The leaves are simple, oppositely arranged. They are deciduous, lanceolate, with slightly serrate margins. They are green, becoming alder in autumn. Forsythia blooms in early spring before the leaves develop. It is a decorative shrub in flowers and habit, planted solitary or in groups in parks and gardens. It is also found in the form of hedges.