This shrub with yellow flowers is called Forsythia. Forsythia is very well known and flowering very early in the spring. Because of winter in Vancouver is not so severe, and it feels spring like weather already, you can see them blooming everywhere. I took this photo today just in my neighbourhood. Spring is more brighter with the presence of yellow flowers of Forsythia that cover the whole tree. The leaves come later just before the flowers fall to the ground. Forsythia can grow as high as 3 m.
I noticed also that there are other plants starting to bloom too: heather is a ground cover with white and purple flowers, camelia is a shrub with yellow and red flowers and some species of rhododendron, Japanese pieris and magnolia with flowers in purple, red and white.