Archive – Japanese Kerria

Kerria j. ‘Golden Guinea’
Kerria j. ‘Pleniflora’
Kerria j. ‘Pleniflora’
Kerria j. ‘Superba’
Kerria j. ‘Superba’

Japanese Kerria

COMMON NAME	Japanese Kerria
BOTANICAL NAME *	Kerria japonica
ZONE	4 to 9
SIZE	5 – 10 ft HT, 6 – 10 ft SP
FOLIAGE	Green in spring and summer. Mine looks rather poor after flowering in the spring, so plant with other more attractive plants in front or on the sides. Stems are green throughout the winter, but still nothing great.
FLOWER	The yellow flowers in the spring are outstanding. It typically blooms after Forsythia is finished, and before many of the other flowering shrubs hit their peak. Kerria j. ‘Pleniflora’ has a double flower that looks like a round button, and tends to be more of a Golden Yellow. Kerria j. ‘Superba’ has a single flower, and I think it’s a bit more graceful, and is more of a clear yellow.
GROWING CONDITIONS	Average well-drained soil. Part Shade to Full Shade. Will sucker to form colonies which can be a problem. Simply remove unwanted suckers as soon as they appear.
NOTES	Cultivars worth noting… Kerria j. ‘Pleniflora’ – Golden Yellow, double, round, button type flowers; Kerria j. ‘Superba’ – Clear Yellow, single flowers; Kerria j. ‘Golden Guinea’ – Clear Yellow single flowers similar to ‘Superba’, but the foliage is a lighter green with dark green veination.

* A particular plant will have only 1 botanical name. Unfortunately, a particular plant may have several common names or it may share a common name with another plant. Whenever possible, use the botanical name.