How to Grow and Care for Honeysuckles

Amur honeysuckle is a massively-branched, perennial shrub with dark green leaves, aromatic white flowers, and luscious burgundy berries that are inedible to humans but relished by birds propagating the seeds. This East Asian native shrub has been utilized in landscape decoration, wildlife cover, and erosion control. However, it is no longer recommended for planting due to invasiveness issues.

Japanese honeysuckle (*Lonicera japonica*) is a twining vine native to East Asia. It features white-yellow flowers that emit a pleasant, sweet aroma and are often visited by pollinators such as honeybees, but some parts of the plant are toxic to humans. In landscaping, japanese honeysuckle is used as a groundcover because its dense, fast-growing nature helps prevent weeds and improve soil health.

Bush honeysuckle was introduced to the United States in the late 1800s as an ornamental shrub, prized for its fragrance and its white, pink, or even crimson flowers. Due to its aggressive and quick growing nature, however, bush honeysuckle has been identified as an invasive species that competes with native plants for soil moisture, pollination, and light.

Dwarf honeysuckle is a deciduous shrub that is commonly used as a hedge or planted for screening purposes. This mounding shrub can mature to 9 to 12 m tall, and its white flowers are quite showy. The dwarf honeysuckle is unique from other honeysuckles in that it is pollinated by flies, although it is still attractive to bees and butterflies.

Native to Siberia and East Asia, the tatarian honeysuckle was introduced to North America in 1752 as an ornamental plant. However, it is now out of control and widely considered as an invasive plant in North America. Though centimeter-sized fruits look delicious, they are NOT edible to humans, actually.