Limber honeysuckle is a woody, loosely twining vine that sprawls or climbs on nearby vegetation.
Flowers are stalkless, in clusters at the branch tips; the corolla (the fused, tubelike petals) are divided one-third to one-half of the way to the base into 2 lips of equal length that curl back; the upper lip is shallowly 4-lobed, and the lower lip has 1 lobe; the tube is weakly swollen or pouched on the lower side near the base; the petals are white to lemon yellow, tinged with red, purple, or pink, and do not change color after pollination.
Blooms April–June.
Leaves are opposite, simple, the upper pair just below the flowers united to form a disk that is longer than broad, with the upper surface green or barely whitened; the leaves below the disk are not united; their lower surface is covered with a white waxy coating, either smooth or hairy.
Fruits are orangish-red to red berries.
Key identifiers:
- Flowers in crowded clusters
- Flowers tubular
- Flowers yellow or greenish yellow, tinged with red, purple, or pink
- Flowers noticeably enlarged on one side at the base
- Upper pair of leaves, just below the flowers, are united to form a disk that is longer than broad; the upper surface green or barely whitened; leaves below the disk not united.
Similar species: Several other species of honeysuckles (Lonicera) occur in Missouri. Below are the ones you are most likely to encounter.
- In addition to limber honeysuckle (L. dioica), other native Missouri species of honeysuckles include yellow honeysuckle (L. flava) and grape honeysuckle (L. reticulata). Our three Missouri native honeysuckles are all woody vines.
- Another woody, vining honeysuckle you may encounter in natural places is trumpet or coral honeysuckle (L. sempervirens). It is not native to Missouri but is native to US states to our east and south and is not particularly invasive in Missouri. It has bright red or orangish-red flowers and is scattered mostly south of the Missouri River, often persisting in places where people planted it long ago.
- Unfortunately, some nonnative, invasive honeysuckles are well-established in Missouri, too: Japanese honeysuckle (L. japonica, a woody vine), and bush honeysuckles (L. x bella and L. maackii, which are shrubs). These are native to Eurasia, outcompete and overwhelm native plant communities, and harm the natural environment.
Vine length: to 13 feet.
Uncommon and widely scattered in the state.
Habitat and Conservation
Occurs on bases and ledges of bluffs, upland forests, and rocky banks of streams and rivers, rarely also along fence rows and thickets.
Status
Native Missouri woody vine.
Human Connections
Beautiful, fragrant flowers, attractiveness to hummingbirds, and hardiness make honeysuckles popular in landscaping.
Two of our worst invasive plants are introduced, nonnative honeysuckles, but this native species is not one of them. It does well as a trellis vine in the native landscape garden.
Ecosystem Connections
The deep, tubular flowers provide nectar to pollinators that are able to reach inside. Hummingbirds have long, pointy bills and extendable tongues for this purpose.
Several species of birds and mammals eat honeysuckle fruits in the fall.
Deer browse the stems and leaves.
