Japanese honeysuckle. I read online that it's so invasive.

On the Internet some site says Japanese honeysuckle is so invasive it shouldn't even be planted in this country. Is this true? It was sold out at OHS, so people are planting it. The picture showed a gorgeous white flowering vine that I wanted to plant along with Star Jasmine.

OMG! Please, for your sake, don't do it! At least check your state's list of invasive plants 1st (should be online).

I planted Japanese honeysuckle right away the 1st year I bought my house and started my garden. At that time I had no idea the stuff was invasive. By the time I learned about invasives about a year later it was too late for me. I can't tell you how much time I've invested in trying to remove the stuff to no avail and only to have it come back bigger and stronger and having spread farther year after year. It wraps itself around everything in its path growing at an amazing rate of speed.

I have spent entire weekends out there pulling it up and carting it off. At other times I have sprayed it with the strongest herbicides I can find. Nothing works. At this point, I don't know how I will ever get rid of it or even contain it. yes, it is pretty when in bloom, but not that pretty. In my area it will not stay put in the area where it is planted. It's not happy until it covers, crowds out, and kills every plant in the garden. There are other plants that are just as pretty or prettier but which are also much better behaved.

The home centers sell lots of it in my area every year, too, but that doesn't mean you want it in your yard. They are probably selling it to lots of other unsuspecting people just like me who don't know the mistake they are making until it is too late. That stuff should at least be labelled to warn prospective gardeners. Think twice before you plant this stuff.

It's not officially on the invasive list for California, but as scutler pointed out just because it hasn't been declared invasive doesn't mean it's necessarily something that is "garden friendly". If you want something with whitish flowers that's fragrant, consider Jasminum polyanthum instead--it's still a rather vigorous vine but won't be as likely to get out of control as the honeysuckle would.

Star jasmine alone should be adequate, as it can get pretty large, but isn't going to be out of control like the honeysuckle you mentioned. It's also much more forgiving of pruning.

I think that is the best idea.

I have a confederate jasmine on a section of fence. It has grown incredibly lush and dense in the 4yrs it has been there, but it hasn't tried to move beyond the 8ft or so of fence it 'owns'. When it blooms you can smell the wonderful aroma all across the yard, and the dark green leaves are very attractive even when it is not in bloom. I only prune it once, maybe twice, per year. Actually, I crop it close to the fence and neaten it up with the hedger. My neighbor has even complimented it several times.

No one, BTW, has ever complimented the Japanese honeysuckle which, incidentally, doesn't bloom at all well in my yard despite being in full sun. I think mine is too busy putting all of its energy in to making leaves and taking over the world. It doesn't have the time or energy to bloom heavily.

If you are determined to have honeysuckle, why not consider one of the lonicera sempervirens options. I don't believe it comes in white, but it is a native and has many great attributes. I have Alabama Crimson. Unlike the Japanese honeysuckle, this one has remained in the area where I put it. It is covered in bright red tubular blooms all summer followed by red berries in late summer and early fall. Hummingbirds absolutely love it and hover around it constantly. Cardinals and a host of other song birds gravitate to it later in summer to eat the berries. Mine is even blooming incredibly well despite being planted against the north side of my [2 story] house where it gets little direct sun. Oh, and I don't believe I have ever pruned it. It also comes in yellow and orange. Just a thought.

I agree with everyone else. Japanese honeysuckle is so invasive, it has done a tremendous job of almost completely crowding out our native red honeysuckle. Hubby and I finally found a small area where some of the red was growing and dug up a piece to grow on a trellis in our yard. (We had permission to dig it and it was already being crowded out by Japanese honeysuckle.) It is MUCH more polite than the Japanese and, as scultler says, the hummers love the flowers and various song birds love the berries. Around here, you could go out in the woods and dig up tons of Japanese honeysuckle for free. I believe some stores would sell us Kudzu if they thought we'd buy it!

Thanks, everyone! Wow, I think we gardeners should try to publicize this to save others from what happened to scutler. I'm going to write a letter to my local paper about the vine, but first does anyone know if the Japanese have problems with it if it originated in Japan, as its name would suggest?

Maybe not...they proably bonsai it !

No doubt. Otherwise instead of Godzilla they would have made a movie called "Invasion of the Killer Vine" a la "The Little Shop of Horrors."
Now another question about invasives: I've read that mint is one, but I impulsively bought a little plastic pot of a type that said the dried leaves repel ants. Does anyone know if, (1), this is true; and (2), is mint such an invader that it should never be allowed out of a container?
And as for the kudzu, I remember reading horror stories about how it was overtaking some southern states several years ago. Was that true and has it now been controlled?
And scutler, don't feel you're the only one who made a really fatal mistake out of ignorance. I used to live in a property that backed up to a kit fox ( an endangered species) preserve. It never occurred to me that wildlife of all stripes would encroach on my yard. The gophers were delighted with my plant roots, and, pacifist that I am, I tried using those vibration-generating devices to encourage them to leave -- to no avail. I became so battle-fatigued that I gave up gardening for years, and that's why I'm still such a novice.

I can't speak of the invasiveness of mints other than the variegated one, which was the biggest mistake I ever planted. It took years to finally get rid of it.

I'd leave that mint in a large pot--it will take over your world. As for that kudzu--the horror stories are very real and, no, they haven't gotten it under control. You can drive all the way from Vicksburg to Natchez and see miles and miles of trees, abandoned houses, etc. that have been completely taken over by it. BTW, it comes from China. It was originally someone's bright idea to bring it over to control erosion but it has ended up controlling almost everything down here!

A relative of mine was never able to get that mint out of her lawn after planting a tiny sprig at one corner of the house. Don't do it. I don't think the mint is as insidious as the Japanese Honeysuckle, but it is quite inclined to spread and take over. For that matter, most herbs need to be contained in some manner to keep them under control. I planted a tiny piece of oregano and some chives in my garden years ago and now I have oregano and chives all over the place. I have mint in a large container. It still manages to escape its confinement every now and then and start a colony here and there on the ground around the pot. I have to dig the new starts up quickly to keep it from getting a foot hold.

I have never seen the Kudzu except in pictures. I don't think we have it around here, thank heavens. I have no doubt that it is quite real though.

LOL scutler--when it comes to kudzu, I'm like you with the mint except I keep Roundup just for the kudzu. If I see one tiny piece trying to come up, I run for the Roundup and zap it! Fortunately, all my neighbors are just as diligent with it on their property so we're all pretty much kudzu-free. That and poison ivy are the only things I use poison on.

I have a Canadian Honeysuckle Vine that I bought last year when my favorite nursery had their Season Closeout Sale. So far, it seems to be growing just like I want it to.

Could this vine be invasive also?

Lisa

Assuming this is your Canadian honeysuckle http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=LOCA7&mapType=nativity&photoID=loca7_1h.jpg it's native to TN so it's not invasive, and as a matter of fact it's actually listed as rare/endangered in a couple of states. I don't know how it behaves in a garden setting though--even things that are natives can sometimes grow a little too well in a garden setting. But here's a native plant site that's recommending it as a good substitute for some of the invasive honeysuckles so I expect it probably behaves OK in the garden http://www.wildflower.org/plants/result.php?id_plant=LOCA7

I bought 4 honeysuckles last year, 2 are yellow & white blooms, and 2 are bright pink. the 2 yellow are growing like crazy up the trellis' i put up for them in front of our deck. One of the pinks looked like it died, but now I see just a little of it starting again. the 2nd pink, is growing very leggy and slowly. Problem is I cant remember what types they are. I bought them on sale. I am hoping neither are the Japanese ones you are referring to? I am in zone 7- bought them locally in OK.

Unfortunately, they sound like the Japanese varieties. Do you have a picture of either of them? That would help a lot.

Try spraying the honeysuckle with 24D Amine. Should wipe it out.