Lonicera japonica
Lonicera japonica, known as Japanese honeysuckle and golden-and-silver honeysuckle, is a species of honeysuckle native to eastern Asia. It is often grown as an ornamental plant, but has become an invasive species in a number of countries. Japanese honeysuckle is used in traditional Chinese medicine.
Description
Lonicera japonica is a twining vine able to climb up to high or more in trees, with opposite, simple oval leaves long and broad. When its stems are young, they are slightly red in color and may be fuzzy. Older stems are brown with peeling bark, and are often hollow on the inside. The flowers are double-tongued, opening white and fading to yellow, and sweetly vanilla scented. The fruit, which is produced in fall, is a black spherical berry diameter containing a few seeds. While the nectar from the flowers can be safely consumed by humans, all other parts of the plant have the potential to be toxic.Subspecies
There are three species of Lonicera japonica:| Image | Subspecies | Description | Distribution |
| Lonicera japonica var. chinensis Baker | Corolla purple outside, white inside. Usually diploid 2n=18 | China around 800 meters | |
| Lonicera japonica var. japonica | Vigorous vine, Corolla white, later yellow-white. Usually diploid 2n=18 | Grows on the edge of forest in China, Japan, and Korea | |
| Lonicera japonica var. miyagusukiana Makino | Tetraploid with chromosome number of 2n=36 | Found in tops of exposed windy limestone cliffs in Ryukyus Islands, Japan |
Cultivation, management, and uses
This species is often sold by American nurseries as the cultivar 'Hall's Prolific', and in the UK as the cultivar 'Halliana'. The cultivar is also known as Hall's Japanese honeysuckle. It is an effective groundcover and has pleasant, strong-smelling flowers. It can be cultivated by seed, cuttings, or layering. In addition, it will spread itself via shoots if given enough space to grow. The variety L. japonica var. repens has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.Japanese honeysuckle flowers are edible to humans and appreciated for their sweet-tasting nectar. The flowers can also be a significant source of food for deer, rabbits, hummingbirds, and other wildlife.
Herbal medicine
In traditional Chinese medicine, Lonicera japonica is called rěn dōng téng ; literally "winter enduring vine") or jīn yín huā. Alternative Chinese names include er hua and shuang hua, meaning double- flowers. In Korean, it is called geumeunhwa.The dried leaves and flowers are employed in traditional Chinese medicine, being used to treat fever, cold-related headache, cough, thirst, certain inflammation including sore throat, skin infection, and tumor necrosis.
As an invasive species
Japanese honeysuckle has become naturalized in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, New Zealand, and much of the US, including Hawaii, as well as a number of Pacific and Caribbean islands. It is classified as a noxious weed in Texas, Illinois, and Virginia, and is banned in Indiana and New Hampshire. It is listed on the New Zealand National Pest Plant Accord as an unwanted organism.Lonicera japonica was initially brought to the United States from Japan in the early 1900s as an ornamental plant. It is still deliberately planted in the United States for reasons such as erosion control or forage for deer, but has become invasive in many areas. It prefers to invade areas that have been disturbed, such as roadsides or floodplains. It will generally only invade forests when the canopy has been opened by logging or fallen trees, as it grows less vigorously in the shade. Once it has invaded an area, Lonicera japonica grows rapidly and outcompetes native plants for sunlight and nutrients. It proliferates using both sexual and vegetative reproduction, producing seeds that are spread by animals and expanding locally via rhizomes. Eventually, it will form a dense thicket which prevents other plant species from germinating in that area. Due to its suppression of germination in the understory, Lonicera japonica also prevents the regeneration of trees.
Management of invasive Lonicera japonica has been achieved through a variety of means. Small patches can be removed by hand, or using simple digging tools, but all plant parts including roots and rhizomes must be removed to prevent resprouting. Larger patches can be removed through repeated mowing, but application of herbicide is also recommended to prevent regrowth. There has been some study of using controlled burns to remove Lonicera japonica, but the underground portion of the plant is usually able to survive and resprout, limiting the effectiveness of this method. Browsing by herbivores may limit its growth, but is unlikely to fully eliminate it. There is currently no known biological control for Lonicera japonica.