Identifying characteristics:
Honeysuckles are woody, twining vines or tall, erect shrubs recognizable
by the fact that the leaves, flowers, branches and fruits are all paired.
The leaves are rather small, simple,
opposite and have short petioles. The leaf margins are entire. The flowers are produced in spring, may be fragrant
in some species and are usually white, pink or pale yellow and are paired
at the ends of short stalks that emerge from the leaf axils. The fruits are small, paired, red or orange berries,
often remaining on the plant into winter. The buds vary in shape according
to the species, but their scales are arranged in four vertical rows.
Similar species:
Ecology:
Distribution and habitat: There are 24 honeysuckles native to
the US, 100 to 160 in the world. Most species grown in Iowa are species
introduced from east and central Asia. A general rule-of-thumb is that shrub
species with hollow twigs are generally introduced, and those with a solid,
whitish pith are native. Vine species with fruits all along the stems are
generally introduced and those with flowers or fruit only at the stem tips
are native. The most common species in Iowa are two introduced Asian shrubby
species, the Tatarian honeysuckle (L. tatarica) and the Amur honeysuckle
(L. mackii), the first with blunt leaf apices and red fruits, the
second with narrowed leaf apices and orange fruits. Both have become naturalized
in our woodlands, often forming thickets
that exclude native species. Of the two, the Tatarian honeysuckle is more
susceptible to honeysuckle witches broom aphid. First detected in Scott
county in 1981, this aphid feeds on the leaves, injecting a toxin that causes
a proliferation of small side shoots at the branch ends called a witches
broom. Affected leaves fold around the insect, making infestations difficult
to control. Damage is mostly aesthetic, and control includes foliar systemmic
insecticides and pruning of the affected branches. Powdery mildew and leaf
blights attack the lower leaves of plants in shaded locations and dense
plantings.
Uses:
Wildlife: The juicy fruits of all honeysuckles are relished by birds
and the thick growth provides shelter for birds and small mammals.
Horticulture: Honeysuckles, depending on the species, may be used in the landscape as slope stabalizers, screening plants, informal hedges or as border specimens. The Tatarian honeysuckle (L. tatarica) has many cultivars, including 'Alba,' with pure white flowers; 'Arnold Red,' with the darkest red flowers of all honeysuckles and supposedly resistant to honeysuckle aphid; and 'Nana,' of dwarf habit (3 feet tall) with pink flowers.
