Japanese kerria (Kerria japonica) is an underused, early flowering, deciduous shrub that thrives in full to part-shade landscapes. It is somewhat unique among flowering shrubs that kerria blooms profusely in partial shade. The flowers are bright golden yellow with five petals – very similar to an old-fashioned rose. It has a bloom time that begins in late March to mid-April in Upstate South Carolina, and flowering lasts for a couple of weeks. Although another common name is Japanese yellow rose, most people recognize this shrub by its genus name, Kerria.