Looking at Plants

Lonicera sempervirens

COMMON NAMES

Coral Honeysuckle, Trumpet Honeysuckle

Lonicera (luh-NIS-er-ah) – named for Adam Lonitzer, 16^th century German botanist

sempervirens (sem-pur-VY-renz) – evergreen

GROUP 

Dicot

FAMILY 

Caprifoliaceae

ORIGIN

Southeast United States

DESCRIPTION

Coral Honeysuckle is an evergreen (in warmer zones) to deciduous (in colder zones) twining vine that averages 10 to 15 feet in height (depending on support structure) with a spread of 3 to 6 feet. It has a fast growth rate.

Leaves are evergreen in warmer areas to deciduous in colder areas, somewhat variable from oval to ovate to oblong in shape, opposite in arrangement, simple with entire margins, somewhat glossy on top and glaucous underneath, 1 to 3 inches long, and blue green in color. It has pinnate veins.

The flowers are about 2 inches long, tubular/trumpet-shaped, and are borne in whorled clusters at the stem ends. The outer petals are a coral red/orange and the interiors are a yellow. It blooms periodically throughout the year in warmer regions and from about April to July elsewhere.

Fruit are small red berries about ¼ inch in diameter and appearing in fall.

HARDINESS

It is hardy in USDA zones 4 to 10. It has good heat tolerance.

LIGHT

Full sun for best flowering. It will tolerate light shade with fewer flowers.

SALT

Moderate Salt Spray Tolerance – it will tolerate some spray, but it is best to have more protection such as a fence or building as an additional barrier behind the first row of plantings or the first dunes.

SOIL

It will grow on a wide variety of well-drained soils in a preferred pH range of 6.0 to 7.5, but it will tolerate soils outside that range.

WATERING

It has good drought tolerance once established, so minimal watering is needed for survival in dry spells. As with most plants, though, ample irrigation in droughts keeps it healthier and looking better.

PROPAGATION

Seed – requires approximately 2 to 3 months stratification at about 40 degrees F; semi-hardwood cuttings taken in the summer or fall, especially for cultivars to remain true; layering

PRUNING

Prune after main flowering as it blooms primarily on previous year’s growth

FERTILIZING

It has no special fertilizer needs. Unless a soil test suggests otherwise, a slow-release balanced analysis fertilizer applied per the product label will work.

PESTS

Aphids, Leafrollers, Four-lined Plant Bug, Euonymus Scale, Fall Webworm

DISEASES

Leaf Spots, Powdery Mildew, Ramorum Blight, Botryosphaeria Canker and Dieback

DEER

Resistant

There are very few totally “deer-proof” plants. There are also, relatively speaking, few plants that are considered a preferred food supply of deer. Most plants fall in the big gap between. One of the biggest variables is the available preferred food supply in a given area. If their preferred food is scarce, they will munch on most anything.

OTHER

Good butterfly and hummingbird plant

Birds love the berries

Tolerates nearness of Walnuts

USES

Specimen plant, containers, flowering vine with support such as a trellis or arbor 

TOXICITY

A search of California Poison Control, ASPCA, Texas A&M University, Canadian Poisonous Plants Information System, University of Wisconsin, Poisonous Houseplants and Ornamentals - Merck Vet Manual, Purdue University - Guide to Toxic Plants in Forages, Poisonous Plants of the Southeastern United States - Alabama Cooperative Extension, Florida Poison Control, University of California, North Carolina State University, and The Cat Fanciers Association did not show this specific plant on any of their lists.



University of Wisconsin lists Honeysuckle as non-toxic.

There is a mixed bag of listings for various Lonicera spp., some species on poisonous plant lists and some on non-toxic lists.