Clearing Woods - Shrubs - Part 3 - Honeysuckle
Shrubs - Part 3 - Amur Honeysuckle
The tallest and largest of the bush honeysuckles appears here and there in my USDA zone 7 woodland.
Lonicera maackii pops up in widely scattered spots. I've found perhaps four or five of these non-native shrubs.
I have one quite handsome (in my opinion) specimen whose vase shape, bark, flowers and fruit I enjoy a good deal. Most of the ones I've located are small and ill-formed.
Belonging to the honeysuckle family (Caprifoliaceae) along with Sambucus canadensis (common elder), Symphoricarpos albus (snowberry) and Viburnum, it was introduced to Europe in 1887. Iit is native to central and northeastern China, Manchuria, Korea and Japan. In 1898, it was introduced to the New York Botanical Garden. It's now naturalized in much of the eastern and central US and Ontario, Canada.
In its native habitat, it's found in mixed forests, floodplain forests and scrub communities, often in calcareous soil.
In North America, it's found in forests in urban areas or those that have been disturbed by cutting or grazing and in weedy thickets or semi-shaded fencerows. It will grow in most soils from sand to loam to clay and it tolerates a wide pH range (3.7 to 7.0). It is said to be especially vigorous and aggressive on calcareous soil.
The leaves are opposite each other on the leaf stems, simple in shape with an acuminate tip (the sides gradually become concave at the apex and taper to a point) and a non-rounded base. It is the only one of the non-native bush honeysuckles with acuminate leaves.
Leaves are held until late fall; often into the end of November in my garden. They don't turn color, but remain green until they drop.
White to pink flowers, fading to yellow, are paired at the ends of short stalks emerging from the leaf axils from May to June on multi-stemmed shrubs that can reach from ten to fifteen feet (3 - 4.5 m) in height and spread.
The flowers are a source of nectar for many insects. I have read that the flowers are very fragrant, but have not noticed any fragrance on my plants.
Relatively fast growers, they can put on a foot to eighteen inches (30 - 45 cm) a year. Depending on resource, they are rated hardy from USDA zones 2 or 3 to 8. Extremely adaptable, they grow well in sun to partial shade and moist or dry soil. The form is erect, often with the arching branches that make my specimen so attractive.
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