Lonicera fragrantissima

Winter Honeysuckle

Caprifoliaceae

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Habitat

  • native to eastern China
  • hardy to zone 4

Habit and Form

  • widespreading, deciduous shrub
  • irregular, rounded form
  • up to 10' tall, with and equal or greater width
  • medium texture
  • fast growth rate

Summer Foliage

  • opposite, simple leaves
  • simple, deciduous leaves
  • elliptic leaf shape
  • 1" to 3" long
  • dull blue-green leaf color

Autumn Foliage

  • no fall color
  • leaves drop green

Flowers

  • creamy, white flowers
  • fragrant, lemon-scented
  • blooms in early spring
  • not showy

Fruit

  • deep red berries
  • 0.33" in diameter
  • matures in mid-summer

Bark

  • glabrous, slender reddish brown to purplish stems
  • flaking
  • twiggy habit

Culture

  • easy to grow
  • easily transplanted
  • prefers loamy, well-drained, moist soil
  • full sun to partial shade
  • prune after flowering

Landscape Use

  • barrier
  • screen or hedge
  • massing or grouping
  • for fragrance of flowers

Liabilities

  • powdery mildew
  • leaf spot
  • fall webworms

ID Features

  • imbricate, sessile buds, somewhat pubescent
  • buds have 4 ranked scales
  • lemon-scented flowers
  • opposite leaf arrangement
  • small red fruit
  • no fall color

Propagation

  • by cuttings
  • by seed

Cultivars/Varieties

  • none

© Copyright Mark H. Brand, 1997-2015.

The digital materials (images and text) available from the UConn Plant Database are protected by copyright. Public use via the Internet for non-profit and educational purposes is permitted. Use of the materials for profit is prohibited.

Citation and Acknowledgements: University of Connecticut Plant Database, http://hort.uconn.edu/plants, Mark H. Brand, Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, Storrs, CT 06269-4067 USA.