Plant
Forsythia
16 US plant patents name this plant. 9 have expired, so those cultivars are free to propagate and sell. The next of the 7 still protected comes off patent on October 10, 2026.
Still under patent — 7 cultivars
Soonest to come off patent first. You may not propagate these for sale until the date shown.
- MindorPP19321Forsythia plant named ‘Mindor’UNDER PATENTOctober 10, 2026
- Minfor6PP24361Forsythia plant named ‘Minfor6’UNDER PATENTNovember 23, 2031
- NimbusPP23838Forsythia plant named ‘Nimbus’UNDER PATENTJanuary 5, 2032
- BJ2013PP30146Forsythia plant named ‘BJ2013’UNDER PATENTAugust 3, 2037
- MNICH01PP32114Forsythia plant named ‘MNICH01’UNDER PATENTDecember 3, 2039
- UMNFOR01PP35518Forsythia plant named ‘UMNFOR01’UNDER PATENTApril 4, 2042
- DiscoveryPP35765Forsythia plant named ‘Discovery’UNDER PATENTMarch 17, 2043
Already in the public domain — 9 cultivars
Most recently freed first. Anyone may propagate and sell these plants — though the name it is sold under may still be a live trademark.
- McKCitrinePP16464Forsythia plant named ‘McKCitrine’PUBLIC DOMAINDecember 9, 2024
- CourdijauPP13050Forsythia plant named ‘Courdijau’PUBLIC DOMAINJanuary 18, 2021
- Princeton GoldPP11055Forsythia hybrid plant named `Princeton Gold`PUBLIC DOMAINAugust 22, 2017
- CourtasolPP9104Forsythia plant -- Courtasol varietyPUBLIC DOMAINApril 11, 2014
- FiestaPP7523Forsythia plant named `Fiesta`PUBLIC DOMAINAugust 10, 2009
- Tinkle BellsPP7575Forsythia cv. `Tinkle Bells`PUBLIC DOMAINNovember 21, 2008
- Fairy-LandPP7533Forsythia plant named `Fairy-Land`PUBLIC DOMAINNovember 16, 2008
- Lemon-ScreenPP7535Forsythia cv. `Lemon-Screen`PUBLIC DOMAINNovember 16, 2008
- Pygmy-RedPP7583Forsythia plant named `Pygmy-Red`PUBLIC DOMAINNovember 16, 2008
Botanically this is Forsythia. A patent expiring frees the plant, and its cultivar name with it — cultivar names cannot be trademarked. Any brand name it is sold under is a separate thing and may still be owned.