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Habitat: Honeysuckles
grow easily in soils of average fertility in full sun or light shade.
Diseases: 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. |
Distribution: Most species grown in Iowa are
species introduced from east and central Asia. The most common species in
the state 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. 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. Both have
become naturalized in our woodlands, often forming thickets that exclude
native species. |