The Charming Nook

Hello and welcome back to my blog 🙂

Last weekend I started clearing some of the japanese honeysuckle that is growing in various areas of the garden (and is starting to take over…)

It has sparked an idea for me: I am going to start writing a series of posts called ‘Plant in focus’. These posts will be adhoc and will focus singularly on a plant that week that I will research and look more in depth at.

The post this week is therefore slightly different to my usual format. This week in this new series, I’ll be writing about japanese honeysuckle (lonicera japonica).

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The main part of the garden that the japanese honeysuckle grows in is The Honeysuckle Nook. I first introduced that part of the garden here: Introducing: The Honeysuckle Nook

I’m quite happy to allow the honeysuckle to run rampant in that area of the garden. I ultimately want it to completely envelope that area to create a secluded and fragrant seating area.

Sitting in the area in Spring and Summer watching the bees and butterflies enjoying the flowers is really lovely.

That area also houses a large number of small garden birds like blue tits, house sparrows, occasional robins, along with green and gold finches. They seem to really benefit from the shelter the honeysuckle provides.

However, the honeysuckle has started to take over and grow into The Wild Borders and to the right side of the garden.

In those areas, its rampant scrambling habit is problematic. It keeps trying to twine up and around other plants, so it isn’t ideal to keep it in those areas. I also want to increase the variety of plants throughout the garden for seasonal interest and benefits to wildlife.

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Japanese honeysuckle

The key facts

Japanese honeysuckle is a beautiful and fragrant plant and it offers fantastic benefits to the environment and wildlife.

Japanese honeysuckle originates from East Asia. It is a vigorous evergreen to semi-evergreen twining vine. Where I have it growing, it behaves like an evergreen climber.

In Spring/Summer it blooms with yellow/cream fragranced flowers. It produces black coloured berries thereafter, which are enjoyed by the birds. The flowers are loved by bees, butterflies and other pollinators.

The folklore associated with honeysuckle says that if you plant it near the entrance of a home, it will bring good luck and stop evil spirits from entering. Honeysuckle has also symbolised fidelity. See: https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/trees-woods-and-wildlife/plants/wild-flowers/honeysuckle/

Japanese honeysuckle will grow in both full sun or partial shade, though it has a preference for partial shade. Like most plants, it grows well in fertile and moist but well-drained soil.

Interestingly, the RHS state that this plant needs a sheltered spot to grow, but I have it growing in what can be a very windy area and it doesn’t seem adversely impacted at all.

A cautionary note

Japanese honeysuckle is marked as an invasive non-native species in Northern Ireland, under schedule 9 of the UK Wildlife & Countryside Act (Northern Ireland). It is also similarly marked in other parts of the world. As I am based in the UK, this post focuses on its usage and limitation within the UK. You can read more about invasive non-native species here: Invasive non-native plants / RHS Gardening

What the above basically means is that you can buy the plant, but it is an offence in Northern Ireland to plant it in the wild or cause it to grow in the wild. The reasoning for this is fairly obvious when you consider how vigorous this plant grows and the threat it would pose to other plants, habitats and bio-diversity if left unchecked in the wild.

The RHS state that gardeners should undertake measures to control the growth of this plant. This includes simple measures such as annual pruning to keep it contained. If left to its own devices, it will smother other plants and it will scramble up and over shrubs and trees many meters, strangling and suppressing their growth.

Once the honeysuckle has grown to how I want it in The Honeysuckle Nook, I will just prune it to keep it contained.

Notwithstanding the considerations above, this is a plant that is still well worth growing in my opinion, if you have the room and you keep it well maintained.

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That’s all for today. I will post an update showing the progress of the area I am clearing in due course.

I have some more clematis and new climbing roses to plant in The Wild Borders, which I am excited to share when they arrive!

Happy Gardening 🙂