Botanical description and agricultural technology in the cultivation of honeysuckle, recommendations for reproduction, difficulties, interesting facts, species. If the time of spring comes, and the real summer berry season is still far away, how would you like to try the fresh, non-greenhouse gifts of nature. Here, a modest honeysuckle can come to your aid, which early enough begins to delight caring owners with healthy and tasty berries.
Honeysuckle (Lonicera) is a shrub plant belonging to the type genus bearing the same name - Honeysuckle (Caprifoliaceae). It also includes about 190 varieties, mostly common in the Northern Hemisphere, especially in the Himalayas and East Asia. In Russia, there are up to 14 species of these wild-growing representatives of the green world.
Honeysuckle got its Latin name thanks to the taxonomy of flora and fauna Karl Linnaeus, who decided to immortalize the name of a scientist from Germany - Adam Lonitzer, who lived in the 16th century. Although from the very beginning, Linnaeus thought to call the plant honeysuckle, since in the gardens of European states it was the honeysuckle variety, honeysuckle, that was most in demand.
Honeysuckle has branches with an upright, curly and creeping shape. The height of the shoots can fluctuate within 1–6 m. The branches are green at a young age and pubescence may be present, which often disappears over time. Already in a mature form, the shoots acquire a reddish tint. The peel is torn off from the branches in narrow strips. The crown is quite fluffy and thick.
The leaf plates are distinguished by a glossy, leathery surface. Their shape is ovoid, obovate, elongated lanceolate. The color on the upper side is dark green, and the reverse can take on a bluish tint. On young leaves, as well as on young branches, pubescence is present, which disappears over time. The leaves are placed on the shoots in opposite order. In some varieties, they have short petioles, but at the top of the foliage they are sessile.
The flowers open quite large in size with a white, pinkish, yellow or blue tint. They are most often located in the leaf axils or at the tops of the branches in pairs. Dense capitate inflorescences are collected from flowers. The calyx is poorly developed and an irregularly shaped (in most varieties) tubular corolla emerges from it, which is divided into five lobes at the apex. The irregularity of the buds, which are formed due to the fivefold structure and directly depends on the fact that the three front petals are spliced and unevenly developed, because of this, the corolla takes on double-lipped contours. It has five stamens and an elongated pistil in the form of a column.
The pride of honeysuckle is its early fruits, which resemble berries. They are also placed in pairs and often grow together. Depending on the variety, the shape of the fruit can be rounded, elongated or cylindrical. The color of the berry is dark blue-purple, inside there is a reddish-purple juicy pulp, inside there are dark small seeds. The taste of the berries is sour, sometimes there is a bitterness. The fruits are used for food both raw and cooked, but not all varieties. There are varieties in which the fruits are inedible, but are striking in a reddish-orange tone. Most often, such plants are grown as decorative, beautiful hedges are created from them.
Recommendations for growing honeysuckle, planting and care
- Planting and general care. The plant is planted in spring or summer in a lowland, with swampy soil, but in a sunny, sheltered from the winds - next to a fence or with other bush plantings. For planting, a hole is dug 40x40x40 cm, the distance between the holes is 1-2 meters, depending on the variety. A composition of mixed 10-12 kg of dry manure or humus, 100 grams of double superphosphate, up to 300 grams of wood ash and 30 grams of potassium sulfate is poured into the depression. Carefully combine the composition with the soil and form a mound in the recess, on which a bush is placed. The roots are straightened and covered with a loose substrate. The depth of the root collar should be within 3-5 cm. The soil around the bush is compacted, at a distance of 30 cm a side is made to pour a bucket of water into it. After the liquid has been absorbed, the soil is mulched around the honeysuckle with peat soil, humus or dry soil. Water the plant sparingly, but if the weather is dry, then at the end of May or at the beginning of July it will be necessary to moisten the substrate abundantly, otherwise the fruits will taste bitter. If the weather is mild, then water the honeysuckle only 3-4 times per season. Water under the bush is brought in a bucket of 10 liters at a time. If there have been heavy rains or watering has been carried out, then the soil under the bush should be loosened, while removing the weeds around.
- Top dressing of honeysuckle. After transplantation, fertilizers are not used in the first two goals, and then they are applied once a year and mainly organic matter is used. In late autumn, it is recommended to lay a mixture of 5 kg of compost, 100 grams of ash and 40 grams of double superphosphate on each m2 of the plot. Before the buds open in the spring months, the honeysuckle is fertilized with ammonium nitrate per m2 about 15 grams, and a bucket of water with 1 tbsp diluted in it is poured under each bush. spoon of urea. After harvesting (at the beginning of July), another top dressing is carried out - in a 10 liter bucket, dissolve 25-30 grams of nitroammophoska or nitrophoska, or dissolve slurry in the same volume of water (in a ratio of 1: 4).
- Transfer. To change the "residence" of an adult bush, you should dig in the bush, trying to determine where its root system ends, then the honeysuckle is carefully dug up and removed from the soil, transferred to a new place and planted. The transplant is carried out in the summer, so that the plant takes root painlessly before winter.
- Pruning honeysuckle. If the bush is very thickened, then some zero branches that originate from the soil are pruned. All dry and broken shoots are also removed. The branches of the current year are not touched, they are for the formation of fruits. Shoots with weak growth, old branches or growing very low are pruned. The old bush should also be rejuvenated, leaving only all young shoots, and after fruiting, pruning is carried out to give the bush a compact outline.
Self-breeding tips for honeysuckle
Honeysuckle is propagated by sowing seeds, dividing an overgrown bush, or by planting green lignified cuttings or a combination thereof; layering is also used. The rules in these methods are the same as for any propagation of berry bush plants.
Fight against diseases and pests of honeysuckle
Among the diseases of honeysuckle, powdery mildew, reddish-olive spot and tuberculariosis, fungal diseases are noted. Alas, there are no remedies against viruses, but they fight against fungi with the help of Bordeaux liquid and colloidal sulfur, the drug "Skor", copper oxychloride and others with a similar spectrum of action are also used.
It is quite long to list the pests, since scientists have counted up to 37 of their species annoying honeysuckle. Decis, Eleksar or Inta-Vir are used against pests that gnaw leaves, and Actellik, Confidor or similar ones are used against those who suck juices from the plant.
Interesting facts about honeysuckle
When the fruits ripen, their collection begins almost immediately, since in many varieties the berries quickly fall off. The signal for harvesting is the dark blue color of the honeysuckle berries. A cloth is put under the bush and the fruits are shaken off on it, so the well-ripened ones are collected. The berries are very delicate and easily damaged, so they are placed in a container in a thin layer. They immediately need to be frozen or cooked, since the berries are not kept fresh for a long time.
Pounded with sugar, honeysuckle fruits have multivitamin properties and are used for colds. Since the berries contain a large amount of sugars, organic acids, multivitamin A, vitamins C, B1, B2, B19 and many trace elements, as well as pectins and tannins. Because of this, when using honeysuckle berries, gastric secretion increases, they are famous for their choleretic and diuretic effects, and also contribute to the general strengthening of the body, the fight against fungi and pathogenic bacteria. However, if you do not know the recipes, then you should remember that many varieties of honeysuckle have poisonous fruits and you may not improve your health, but even get poisoned.
You can prepare liqueurs and wines, jellies and preserves from the fruits.
Description of the types of honeysuckle
Alpine honeysuckle (Lonicera alpigena) grows in the natural environment in forests located in the mountains of central and southern Europe. Can be cultivated as an ornamental deciduous plant. The height of the bush reaches two meters in height. The leaf plates have petioles with parameters up to one and a half centimeters in length, the shape of the leaf plate is obovate, the surface is dense and glossy, the color is dark green in length, the leaf can grow up to 10 cm. In the process of flowering, odorless buds appear with light yellowish petals and a reddish undertone … The length of the flower reaches 1.5 cm, and it is attached to the flower-bearing stem, the length of which ranges from 2–4.5 cm. Flowering stretches over the period of May-June. When ripe, cherry-like fruits appear, which have pairwise splicing and a scarlet color. Their surface is shiny, they are attached to long stalks. You can't eat these berries. They fully ripen from August to September.
Blue Honeysuckle (Lonicera caerulea) is also found under the name Blue Honeysuckle. The plant has a woody form of growth. The native area of distribution falls on the territory of the temperate zone throughout the Northern Hemisphere of the planet. For its "place of residence" it chooses shikshevniki in woodlands, and also occurs on riverine meadows or in shrub thickets, in tundra on hummock blueberry pine cones, in the forest belt and areas of the subalp.
The shrub has a deciduous mass that can reach 2–2, 5 meters in height. Shoots are generally upright with a slight bend, the crown has a compact outline. The bark near the branches casts a brown color and has a cracking surface, it can flake off over time. The plant has a high growth rate, and can stretch by 20-30 cm per year. At the same time, the life expectancy reaches 20-30 years.
The leaf plates are distinguished by elliptical contours, practically devoid of petioles (sessile), located oppositely on the branches. The length of the leaf often reaches 4–6 cm with a width of about 3 cm. Inflorescences originate in the leaf axils of one to three pairs of leaves located below. The flowers have a pale yellowish tint, their contours are almost regular, with a bell-shaped shape. The bracts have outlines in the form of an awl or a sword, they exceed the calyx in length.
The fruits of this variety are oblong-elliptical with a dark blue color and a bluish bloom on the surface, edible and are distinguished by connoisseurs because of their delicate aroma and sour taste with a slight bitterness, which is very similar to blueberries. This variety is grown for its early berries, as well as for decorative purposes. It is also a good honey plant, giving bees a large amount of nectar and pollen. On the territory of the Altai Territory, it is considered one of the most important melliferous representatives of the flora.
Edible honeysuckle (Lonicera edulis) is a deciduous shrub with upright branches reaching one meter in height. The shoots are mostly refined from a young age, with pubescence of green color, in some places, shimmering with a purple tone. As they grow older, the branches become bare, measure 3 cm in diameter, they are covered with a bark of a yellowish-brown color, which can peel off in narrow strips. The crown of this shrub is spherical in shape, dense, formed by leaf plates growing up to 7 cm in length. The shape of the leaf is elongated lanceolate with rounded stipules. Young leaves, like young twigs, have dense pubescence, growing up, it is lost either partially or completely.
Flowers with yellowish petals, distinguished by a funnel-shaped corolla, originating in the leaf axils. Flowers are usually arranged in pairs. The flowering process begins in May or with the arrival of the first summer days. Ripe fruits of this variety of honeysuckle have a length of 9-12 mm, they can be eaten. The surface color is dark blue with a bluish bloom on the top. Depending on the variety, the berries take on a rounded, elliptical or cylindrical shape. The pulp casts a reddish-purple color, inside there are seeds of a dark brown tone, their size is about 2 mm.
In order for fruiting to be plentiful in one area, it is recommended to plant several varieties, since garden honeysuckle varieties are self-fertile and therefore it will be required that insects can pollinate bush plantings.
Curly Honeysuckle (Lonicera periclymenum) is also called German Honeysuckle. In nature, you can find this plant on the edges of forests and in shrubs in the west and central part of Europe, and it is also not uncommon in the north of the African continent and in Asia Minor. Used as a decorative culture.
It has a shrub shape and climbing shoots, which reach a height of 4-6 meters. Leaf plates vary in length within 4–10 cm. Their arrangement is opposite, attached to the branches by means of short petioles. At the tops of the branches, the leaves are sessile, not growing together with each other. The outlines of the leaves are ovate-lanceolate, can be obovate or oval. The upper side of the leaf plate is of a rich dark green hue, and a bluish tint is present at the bottom.
When blooming, buds appear with yellowish petals, often with a reddish undertone present on them. The flower reaches 5 cm in length, has an accepted sweetish aroma, especially intensifying by the evening. Quite dense capitate inflorescences are collected from the flowers. Flowering time is in May-June. The fruits appear in a bright red hue, not edible.
There are multiple varieties with different color and shape of flowers, grown as an ornamental crop. However, in the conditions of central Russia, in especially harsh winter months, it can freeze slightly, therefore, it will require shelter.
Woven honeysuckle (Lonicera implexa) is a semi-shrub with a height of 1-3 meters (sometimes 7 m). Perennial with evergreen leafy crown and bare branches, blue-green. The leaf plates are leathery, opposite in length 2–8 cm and a width of about 2–4 cm (occasionally 0.5 cm). The color above is dark green, glossy, below the leaf is blue-greenish, the edge is transparent.
From the very beginning, the petals of the buds are shaded with a yellowish color, gradually changing to red. The flowering process takes place from February to May. The fruits are berries with an ovoid shape, which take on an orange-red color at the end of their ripening.
Due to its thermophilicity, it can grow in the coastal Mediterranean territories of Europe, going east to Greece. Likes to settle in forests and maquis.
More on growing honeysuckle in the following video:
