The Good Honeysuckles

This is a family that gets destroyed in most horticultural discussions because of the invasive tendencies for a number of species. However, there are some good honeysuckles, including, I was surprised to learn recently, some natives. Frankly, I don't know much about these plants. Here is a shot of Lonicera x tellmanniana, which has these nice flowers for a relatively short period of time. "Dropmore Scarlet" blooms forever and, although it sets some fruit, has shown no invasive proclivity. In fact, I I haven't even been able to germinate the seed from it intentionally.

I'm hoping others will have things to add here.

Scott

"Dropmore Scarlet," which is a L. sempervirens cultivar, I believe.

Scott

Scott:

Our local natives are way cool honeysuckles--kind of confused whether they want to be a shrub or vine. Lonicera dioica and L. prolifera are the two here. I have seen them sold very rarely, and, unfortunately, I haven't gotten either yet. Thanks for prodding my memory to add these to my list.

Kevin, Lonicera prolifera is sold at Possibility Place. I bought one last spring, but being it's first season, it didn't do a whole lot. Minimal flowering with red berries in the fall.

Our native Lonicera's:
not rare at all, but just common enough to be an interesting find whenever I come upon one.

And I was just perusing the Arrowhead Alpines catalog yesterday(and the day before, and the day before that, and today . . . ). Does anyone have any input on Lonicera crassifolia?

Scott,

The vining honeysuckles are nice plants for sure. The customers voting with their dollars show that they are popular in my neck of the woods. Dropmore, Goldflame and Mandarin have all sold well for us although someone said that Mandarin tends to attacked by aphids moreso than the others that we sell. I ran across L. prolifera a couple of years ago, loved it, forgot about it and now it pops back up. The one that I saw seemed kind of bushy in shape. It was at some sort of test plot that I wandered into at the U of I in Champaign. Very interesting texture. Can anyone confirm if this is normal habit or perhaps a trial clone?

Thanks,
Ernie

Ernie, your nurseries catalog isn't working for me, so what other honeysuckles do you offer to the voting customers? For instance, Hornbaker's only offers the voting customer Lonicera xylosteum 'Emerald Mound'............

I'm a fan of Dropmore Scarlet and have two trained as vines on trellises against my garage (I'm a city gardener with limited space.) They are beautiful and hardy (zone 5b) and attract hummingbirds to my urban territory. They are troubled by aphids which leave them looking haggard at times--but they bloom several times over the summer and provide surprizing little berries in the late summer.

Terry,

I try to carry as few honeysuckles as possible outside of the vines that I listed above. The others have never caught on or sold well. Horror of all horrors, I get my arm twisted into buying a few each year for the customer that insists on the likes of 'Arnold Red.'

Regards,
Ernie

The one that is native here is Lonicera flava.
I love it, but cannot get a pic to download from my PT album to here. :-(

Are there any non-invasive honey suckles that are fragrant?

It is a childhood memory for me, and I would love to have one, on the condition that it is fragrant.

Scott; LOVE your pictures, as always...
Christie

Okay, I found a pic in my documents...

And another one...

Lonicera sempervirens 'Manifich'

I really like lots of the vining non weedy honeysuckles, partly because they are such hummer magnets. John Clayton, in my old garden, consorted with blue and lavendar clematis and was a winner for long bloom and ease of care. I also like the other L. sempervirens cvs in red and orange -- they are very useful in planting a mixed border. I also like some of the L. heckrottii (I think, something like that), which are fragrant and have interesting mixes of colors. All of these seem to be long bloomers and hummer magnets.

I haven't grown it, not sure it is hardy in z5, but isn't there a L. fragrantissima that is a very early bloooming shrub and intensely fragrant? I remember seeing it once in a garden in late winter and being impressed. Would be a great shrub for forcing, given the fragrance and early bloom.

I grow L. Gold Flame on a trellis at edge of my deck. grows vigorously, has been pruned to within 2 feet of ground a couple of times. Is very attractive to aphids. so I spray a couple of times with 10 percent milk (using pwd milk) and that gets rid of the aphids. Have 3 or 4 other varieties.

Donna

L. fragrantissima is hardy to zone 4 according to Niche Gardens.

Ernie- now you've got me curious. What the heck is that plant? It doesn't look like any sort of honeysuckle I've ever seen. The foliage is fabulously interesting. Does anyone know what variety it might be? Curious.

Binder,

I really don't know what it is outside of the fact that it was labeled L. prolifera. I am every so slowly getting my wheels turning into find out if it's top secret stuff or just a species plant that they were growing to see if it would grow (or some other reason.) When I'll find out, I'll post back.

Regards,
Ernie

I have only tried L. frangrantissima once, and it was a very poor winter survivor here in zone 4. This, even during a mild winter. It held on for three winters before I yanked it.

Lonicera fragrantissima on zone 5b acid sand...dunno. On dry circumneutral clay loam, it is a central KY staple item for horse farm hedges. Grows like a weed, but seems to stay put vs. further south where it is/has become an invasive for some.

This shrub honeysuckle holds most of its leaves through the winter, and is incredibly easy to shear into a box, cube, ball, trapezoid even with a chainsaw. Imagine the manipulation of Buxus; increase the leaf size and you've got Lonicera fragrantissima (which doesn't get psyllids or leaf miners, or smell like dog pee). Maybe there's a future in it with topiary...

Other than the cut stem routine, maybe an in situ bloom every few years due to late frosts after early warm ups, and a boffo clematis support, I don't know why you'd pick fragrant shrub honeysuckle over 10 other untried multiseason species.

Ernie, I found out a little more about that plant. It is typically vining but in an open setting (such as your photo) it will form a shrub like shape. It's native to IL. If you are really interested in it, it can be purchased from triplebrook farm.

http://www.tripplebrookfarm.com/iplants/Lonicera.html

Lonicera j. 'Purpurea' is one I will be adding to my garden for my hummies this year......

Forest Farm says, "Pinkish flowers are very fragrant and compliment handsome purple-tinted leaves on this vine similar to, but less rampant than, 'Halliana'"

Here's a photo link

http://toptropicals.com/pics/garden/2004/3/3214.jpg