Japanese Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica)

Plantae>Magnoliophyta>Magnoliopsida>Dipsacales>Caprifoliaceae>Lonicera japonica Thunb.

Japanese Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica)

Japanese Honeysuckle is the most common and familiar woody vine in the Durham, NC area. The flowers are attractive and very fragrant, but the vine is extremely invasive. The flowers, which turn from white to yellow as they age, first appear in early May and continue intermittently through fall. They are popular nectar sources for bees, butterflies (note the Silver-spotted Skipper at left), and humans.

Japanese Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica)

The black fruits are eaten by birds, which spread the seeds everywhere.

Columbia, NC 11/1/05.

Japanese Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica)

Columbia, NC 11/1/05.

Japanese Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica) The evergreen leaves can be confused with those of the much less common native semi-evergreen vine Trumpet Honeysuckle, but are usually broader, a more yellow green, hairier, and less glaucous beneath.

Japanese Honeysuckle, native to China and Japan, is an invasive weed problem throughout the warmer parts of the world, from Fiji to New Zealand to Hawaii.

Columbia, NC 11/1/05.

Japanese Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica)

Fast-growing leaves may look almost oak-like.

Durham, NC 4/5/08.

More information:
Invasive and Exotic Species of North America
Pacific Island Ecosystems at Risk
PCA Alien Plant Working Group
TNC Wildland Invasive Species Team
USDA PLANTS database
Virginia Tech Dendrology

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Revised 4/23/08 cwcook@duke.edu

All photographs and text ©2008 by Will Cook unless otherwise indicated.