cheer up ...

if he actually killed it.. let me know.. i will invite him over to get rid of a few of mine ...

ignore the plant in the ground... maybe a few stakes and some caution tape... will avoid further abuse ... it will come back ... remove the broken branch as near to the ground as you can ....

as for the branch .... make a nice cut flower display of 1 to 2 foot stems.. in a vase.. i will bet a buck they will flower in the house within a week ...

and thereafter root .. it is one of the easiest rooters ...

then your problem will be .... what to do with all the new plants .... pot them up .... before the water roots get too long.... and put them on the window sill ...

now go make sure the rest of your plants are protected from those big ugly boots .... good luck

ken

PS: google FORCING FORSYTHIA for more info ... never mind.. i did it for you .. hit the link ....

Here is a link that might be useful: link

Wait! It's a bush and therefore more resilient than might be thought. The kind of break you describe is seldom more than a "bend - n - crack" type break. Try, just give it a chance and try, to stand it up, splint it and watch it over the next three months. Check under the "bandage" to see if it is starting to grow over the breakage. Many times there are enough xylem and flowum left to carry the necessary nutrients up and down and keep it alive. It will try to overgrow the damage. If it does; help it out this year by pinching off the blooms when they start to develop ...conserving energy for damage control. If it shows no sign of overgrowth then go ahead with the other advice.
Good luck and enjoy!

in my world.. as warped as it might be...

shrubs are properly regenerated by removing 1/3 of the bush per year... on a repeated cycle... google shrub pruning ....

before most shrubs take over the allotted space ...

this large gentleman.. simply started the process a bit early ...

bushes ... not conifers.. are made to be pruned.. and regenerate from the ground up ... and do so with vigor ....

i NEVER splint my trees ... i properly prune out the broken .. and watch the remainder explode in growth, since the roots are not affected ....

for me ... and either way works... its about where i want to put the plants energy ... into healing.. or into fresh un-handicapped growth ... i vote for letting the plant move forward .. rather than spending 2 or 3 years trying to mend it ... and perhaps fail in that time period and have to remove it later .....

hey .. which ever floats your boat... ken

Thank you for your responses! Thanks for the link, Ken!
No, it wasn't just bent; unfortunately, all the brunches (4 of them) were separated from their roots.
Ken, how long do you think it might take forsythia to grow water roots? Last year, I did a flower display out of few forsythia brunches that I trimmed off, but they had never grown new roots. They were standing in water for about 3 weeks, then I just got rid of them after the flowers were gone. If it takes longer than that, then, I have a question about water. Some water will be eventually evaporated, so, what to do to keep its level the same: 1. Just add little more water? or 2. Discard of all the old water and pour the fresh one. This question is not only about forsythias. Many plant can be propagated by growing water roots. And I've heard two opposite points of view. Some say that the fresh water is always the best. Others were saying that the micro environment which a plant is already accustomed to is better. Your opinion?

frankly .... take some extra ... cut maybe to 6 inches .... buy some rooting hormone [any garden center] and soiless medium .... cut the top off a gallon milk jug .... dampen the medium .. wet enough to make a snowball.. but NOT wet enough to drip out water ... put about 3 inches into jug ..... slice stem at 45 degree angle with razor ... dip in powder.. blow or tap off excess... STICK into soil in jug .... cover with one gallon zip lock ... stick in bright area.. but not sun ...

though they may root on their own .. a little help wont hurt ...

if the ground outside isnt frozen .... stick a few out there.. in a shady place...

and leave a few in water .... and change the water often . they root in water.. not pond scum ....

one way or another.... they will root.. experiment... ken

Thank you, Ken! You have tons of great advice! I really appreciate it. I will experiment, now I know how :) - thanks to you.

Ratilda.

fear your success ... lol .. what will you do with 50 of them.. lol ...

you are welcome.. ken