Shrub · Caprifoliaceae
Honeysuckle
Lonicera sempervirens
Give it full sun and something to climb, and trumpet honeysuckle rewards you with coral flowers and a steady rush of hummingbirds.
Full sun
Every 5–10 days
USDA 4–9
8–20 ft · 2.4–6.1 m
Overview
Trumpet honeysuckle is a native flowering vine that flips the script on its invasive cousin and behaves in the garden. It throws whorls of slim, coral-red to orange tubular flowers from late spring deep into summer, then often fires off a second round in fall. Hummingbirds dart in to work the blooms, and red berries follow to feed the birds.
Growing it is a genuine pleasure, because it is easy and adaptable. It settles into most soils, powers through cold down to a punishing low, and asks little once its roots grab hold. Send it up a trellis, an arbor, or a fence and it climbs fast, clearing your head in a season or two.
The one call worth nailing is which honeysuckle goes in the ground. Reach for the native trumpet type, Lonicera sempervirens, every time. Steer clear of Japanese honeysuckle, the runaway white-flowered vine that smothers wild ground across much of the country.
Care
The short version: hand it full sun and a support to climb, average well-drained soil, and steady moisture while it settles, then watch it take off and fend for itself.
Light
Honeysuckle flowers its hardest in full sun, though it will take partial shade and still bloom. Sun keeps the foliage dry as a bonus, which shuts the door on powdery mildew.
Water
Keep the soil evenly moist while the vine digs in, watering every 5 to 10 days. An established plant powers through dry spells, but steady moisture is what unleashes the most flowers.
Soil
It is no diva, thriving in average to rich, well-drained loam or clay loam. A wide pH window of 5.5 to 8.0 suits it, so most garden ground works as long as it drains.
Temperature
This vine is genuinely tough, hardy from a bitter -29°F (-34°C) up to about 100°F (38°C). That range carries it through cold winters and hot summers across most temperate gardens.
Humidity
Ordinary outdoor humidity is plenty, and there is no figure to chase. Airflow is what counts, since still, damp air around crowded foliage is what invites mildew in.
Feeding
Feed lightly in spring with a balanced fertilizer and stop there. Pour on heavy nitrogen and you trade flowers for leaves, so keep it modest.
Pruning
Prune right after the main flush to shape the vine and rein in its size. It flowers on new growth, so a light trim spurs reblooming. Save a hard cutback for late winter, and only when the plant needs a reset.
Repotting
In the ground it never needs repotting, and even in a container it moves up only rarely. Roots circling the pot or bursting out the drainage holes, plus weak flowering, are the tell that it has outgrown its home.
Size & spacing
Give it something to climb and the vine rockets to 8 to 20 feet (2.4 to 6 m) tall and spreads 3 to 6 feet (91 to 183 cm) wide. Set it up with a sturdy trellis or arbor and leave room for that reach.
When to plant
Honeysuckle is a hardy perennial vine, so the calendar is all about getting it established, not racing a frost. Set new plants out in spring or fall, then keep an eye peeled for that first flush of coral flowers from late spring into summer, with plenty more to come if you keep it lightly pruned.
Northern hemisphere
Southern hemisphere
Typical months for a temperate climate: start earlier in warm zones, later where spring frosts linger.
- Plant: spring or fall
- Harvest: late spring into summer, often reblooming into fall
Hardiness
USDA hardiness zones: 4–9
Temperature: down to -34°C
Troubleshooting
Trumpet honeysuckle powers through most years without a fuss, and what does crop up stays cosmetic. Just two things ask for your attention, and both love warm, muggy weather. Match the sign below and you can jump in before it dulls the show.
White dusty coating spreading on the leaves in humid heat
That chalky white coating is powdery mildew, a fungus that pounces when the air turns warm, still, and humid. Run a finger across it and you nail the diagnosis: mildew wipes away, while leaf blight leaves dark marks locked in place. Open the vine up for airflow, aim your water at the base, and park it in full sun so the leaves dry quick, and you send this one packing.
Fix:
- Improve air circulation by thinning and providing support such as a trellis or arbor
- Remove and discard severely affected foliage
- Avoid overhead watering and water at the base of the plant
- Site the vine in full sun where foliage dries quickly
Soft insects swarming the new tips with sticky residue
Those packed little bugs riding the tender tips are aphids, and the sticky honeydew they drop rolls out a welcome mat for ants. Blast them off with a hard jet of water, then chase down any holdouts with insecticidal soap. A vigorous, well-tended vine barely blinks at them, so ease up on the nitrogen that pumps out the soft growth aphids pile onto.
Fix:
- Dislodge aphids with a strong spray of water
- Apply insecticidal soap or horticultural oil to affected growth if needed
- Encourage natural predators such as lady beetles and lacewings
- Reduce plant stress through adequate watering and avoiding excess nitrogen
Toxicity
Honeysuckle lands at the low end of the risk scale. The leaves, flowers, and sweet nectar barely register as a concern, and a child sipping a drop from a bloom comes to no harm. The one thing to flag is the red berries, which hold saponins that can upset a stomach if eaten in quantity, so keep pets and children from grazing on the fruit.
Toxic to
Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · People
Safe for
Birds
Cats Mild
A cat that nibbles a leaf or flower shrugs it off almost every time. The berries are the catch, since a mouthful of the saponin-rich fruit can spark vomiting or loose stools.
Dogs Mild
A dog powers through the leaves and nectar without a hiccup. Load up on the red berries, though, and you can trigger drooling, an upset stomach, and a run of diarrhea.
Horses Caution
Honeysuckle skips the list of serious horse poisons, which is good news. Even so, the berries pack the same saponins that upset other grazers, so keep a nosy horse from tearing into the fruit.
Rabbits Mild
A rabbit that grabs a leaf comes away just fine. The berries flip that around and can hand it a sour gut, so keep the fruit off the treat list.
Livestock Caution
Cattle, goats, and sheep breeze right past the vine as a rule. A grazer that piles into the berries can pick up mild digestive upset from the saponins, so fence prized stock off from a heavy fruit set.
People Caution
A single sipped drop of nectar from a bloom does nothing. The berries flip the script, since they are not food and can upset a stomach in any real amount, so teach children to leave the fruit alone.
Birds Safe
Birds devour the bright red berries with zero harm and fling the seed far and wide as they feed, which is exactly how the vine gets around. The fruit fuels them rather than threatening them.
The sweet flower nectar that children sometimes sip is harmless in tiny amounts, but discourage anyone from eating the berries. Keep pets from grazing on the fruit.
Helpline numbers
United States
ASPCA Animal Poison Control: (888) 426-4435 (fee applies)
Poison Control: (800) 222-1222
Canada
Poison Centres: 1-844-764-7669
Varieties
Most garden honeysuckle boils down to a handful of standout selections, nearly all native trumpet types or well-behaved hybrids. These are the ones worth hunting down, plus one to leave on the shelf.
Lonicera sempervirens 'Major Wheeler'
This native trumpet honeysuckle piles on reddish-orange flowers that rebloom strongly and keep hummingbirds zipping in all season.
Lonicera sempervirens 'John Clayton'
A compact native selection that fires off clear yellow flowers again and again and sets a generous crop of red berries.
Lonicera × heckrottii (Gold Flame honeysuckle)
A fragrant, well-behaved hybrid that shows off two-toned blooms, rose-pink on the outside and yellow within.
Lonicera × brownii 'Dropmore Scarlet'
An extra cold-hardy Brown's honeysuckle that blazes bright red over a long season and keeps its vigor without ever running wild.
Lonicera japonica 'Halliana' (Hall's honeysuckle)
An aggressive Japanese honeysuckle whose fragrant white flowers age to yellow, but it is discouraged or banned in many regions, so chase the natives above instead.
Companions
Keep apart
Lonicera japonica (Japanese honeysuckle): Invasive non-native that smothers desirable plants and the native honeysuckle alike; should not be planted near or in place of native species.
How to propagate
Honeysuckle multiplies with ease, and the rooting routes hand you a flowering vine far sooner than seed. Grab the method that fits your patience and the time of year and get going.
Stem cuttingsEasy
Late spring to summer (softwood/semi-hardwood) · Several weeks to a few months
Snip softwood or semi-hardwood cuttings from late spring into summer, keep them humid, and watch them root over the next several weeks to a few months. This is the fastest, most reliable way to clone a vine you already love, and it rarely lets you down.
LayeringEasy
Spring to summer · One growing season
Anytime from spring through summer, pin a low, flexible stem to the soil and it roots right at the buried node. Hand it a full growing season, then cut the new plant free once it stands on its own roots. It really is that satisfying.
SeedModerate
Fall sowing or after cold stratification · A season or more
Scoop the seed from ripe red berries and sow in fall, or run it through cold stratification, since that chill is the key that unlocks dormancy. Count on a season or more before you have a usable plant, which is why the rooting tricks get you flowering sooner.
Myths
Every honeysuckle vine is an invasive weed that should never be planted.
The real offender is Japanese honeysuckle, Lonicera japonica, a non-native with fragrant white-to-yellow flowers that smothers native plants across much of the eastern, central, and southern US and is regulated or banned in some states. The native trumpet or coral honeysuckle, Lonicera sempervirens, flaunting whorls of coral-red to orange tubular blooms, keeps to its lane in the garden. It is non-invasive and the recommended alternative.
Sources
- NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox
- Missouri Botanical Garden
- USDA National Invasive Species Information Center
- USDA Forest Service Fire Effects Information System
- NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox
- Penn State Extension
- Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center
- NC State Extension Gardener Plant Toolbox