This climber is deciduous so it will lose all its leaves in autumn, then fresh new foliage appears again each spring.

• Position: full sun or partial shade
• Soil: fertile, well-drained soil
• Rate of growth: average
• Flowering period: January to March
• Hardiness: fully hardy
  
  Cheerful yellow flowers appear on bare stems in winter and early spring and really brighten up a dark winter day. This vigorous shrubby climber is easy to grow and easy to train on wires or a trellis, but it looks just as attractive left to scramble freely over low walls. Bright green stems, even in winter, and dark green shoots add to the appeal of this lovely climber and fully earns its early spring place alongside such late winter favourites such as Betula utilis var. jacquemontii, Viburnum x bodnantense 'Dawn', Erica carnea 'Springwood White', and Galanthus nivalis 'Flore Pleno'.
  
  
• Garden care: Incorporate a quantity of well-rotted garden compost or horse manure in the planting hole to improve the moisture-retentive qualities the soil and a scoop of mycorrhizal fungi to aid root establishment. Prune back after flowering to strong buds or young lower branches. On older plants, cut about a quarter of the old shoots to the base each year.