Kerria is a shrub with multiseason interest, one of my favorites in spring, summer and winter. Broad and mounding, some consider it a groundcover shrub because it produces suckers and can spread as far as 9 feet. Reaching an average height of 4 or 5 feet, the stems arch over, taking up a lot of real estate but doing so in such a lovely fashion. Because of its suckering habit, kerria can be a stabilizer on steep banks or even an accent shrub for the corner of your house where it will wrap around the foundation. Sometimes referred to as the Easter Rose, flowers are produced in early spring and may appear sporadically till fall. Tolerant of drought and poor soils, this is one trough shrub. Ideally it prefers partial sun, growing well under a high canopy where it will arch in such a soft way. Grown in full sun, it's a little tighter but certainly happy.

Named after William Kerr, a 19th century English botanist and Kew gardener, he introduced the double flowering form (Kerria japonica 'Pleniflora') in 1804. We now have a few, very different cultivars including the wonderful single flowering Kerria 'Golden Guinea' which produces flowers that are larger than William Kerr's original K. 'Pleniflora'. The flowers look like small single yellow roses, which also reveals their relationship, they are in the rose family. Another noteworthy selection is Kerria 'Albaflora' with flowers that are pale, creamy yellow. I have been told that this is a rather weak variety that grows more slowly, but I beg to differ, my plant is 3 years old, grown from a single sucker and it is already 5 feet across.

By far my favorite of them all is Kerria 'Picta' which produces leaves that are liberally marked in white. The flowers are single and bright yellow, all fine and good, but secondary to the lovely foliage. If you find kerria at your local nursery, chances are you will skip right over them; in the trade the kerrias are cut and trimmed into small round meatball shapes. If left alone, within 1 year you will have arching stems that are more natural and move with the slightest breeze. In fact it's most appealing month may be December as it holds onto its small, yellow fall leaves that flutter on windy days. A deciduous shrub, the winter stems are green which lends itself to a few planting partners. Consider Helleborus foetidus or the stinking hellebore with it's green winter flowers. I also love it with the native Pachysandra procumbens or Allegheny spurge which will form an evergreen groundcover beneath kerria. Spring bulbs are great under its skirts, especially daffodils and deep purple crocus and better yet, the flush of leaves on kerria will be the perfect bulb cover-upper, you know when you need something to hide all of that curing foliage.