How to Grow & Care Honeysuckle in Your Garden

The lovely fragrance of a honeysuckle plant along with the sweet taste of its nectar are well known. Honeysuckles are heat-tolerant and aesthetically pleasing in any garden. A honeysuckle plant is an excellent addition to any landscape, attracting a variety of wildlife with its sweet, yellow to bright-red blossoms.

Honeysuckles (Lonicera spp.) are members of a large family of hardy shrubs and comes in over 180 different varieties. Some are deciduous, while others are evergreen in warmer climates. Honeysuckle vines are simple to grow and care for due to their versatility and abundance.

How to Grow Honeysuckle:

Honeysuckles prefer full sun but will tolerate some shade. The honeysuckle plant is also adaptable to a variety of soil types, though it prefers well-draining soil amended with organic matter.

In suitable areas, honeysuckles can be grown as ground cover, but most thrive with some kind of support, such as a fence or a trellis. They can be grown in containers as well.

Using a Fence or Trellis: Honeysuckles respond well to a strong fence, post, or trellis and will gladly cover even a large trellis in a short period of time. As the plant matures, it tends to shade the lower portion of the vine, causing it to become woody and unappealing.

As a result, during the dormant season, thin out the top half of the vine to keep it healthy. Allow your honeysuckle vine to cover an arbour if desired. This is an excellent way to create a shady area in a sunny landscape.

Containers: Many honeysuckle varieties thrive in containers as long as they receive regular watering and an application of 10-10-10 plant food at the start of the growing season. Provide a trellis for your container vine or allow it to hang in a basket.

Caring Tips for Honeysuckle:

Honeysuckle vine care is simple, aside from the occasional watering; however, pruning is a good practice. Honeysuckle vine species can become invasive as a ground cover if not controlled and must be clipped to be tamed.

As a result, regular shearing and shaping will keep this beauty within its limits. Pruning honeysuckle vine is usually done in the fall or winter when the plant is dormant.

If your honeysuckle has grown wild, don't be afraid to give it a good heavy prune. It will reappear in the spring. You will not need to prune honeysuckle vines if you want to use them for erosion control. Honeysuckle care is simple with annual pruning. Each year, the plant will gladly return, providing an abundance of blooms and sweet nectar for both you and wildlife.