Lonicera sempervirens
Lonicera (synonym Caprifolium and common names Honeysuckle or Woodbine), is a genus of arching shrubs or twining vines native to the Northern Hemisphere. There are about 180 species of honeysuckle, 100 of which occur in China, Europe, India and North America, with about 20 native species in each area.
The name Lonicera stems from Adam Lonicer, a Renaissance German botanist (1528 – 1586). He was noted for his 1557 revised version of Eucharius Rosslin’s herbal. Lonicer was born in Marburg and studied here and at the University of Mainz, and obtained his Magister degree at sixteen years of age. He became professor of Mathematics and Doctor of Medicine, becoming the town physician in Frankfurt am Main. His true interest though was herbs and the study of botany. His first important work on herbs, the Kräuterbuch, was published in 1557, a large part dealing with distillation.
Adam Lonicer
Some species names of Lonicera include:
L. aureo – reticulata = golden veined, a variety of L. japonica
L. caprifolium = a herbalist name for a plant that climbs like a goat
L. fragrantissima = most fragrant
L. nitida = shining- the glossy leaves
L. periclymenum = to twine around, the true ‘Woodbine’ or ‘Honeysuckle’
L. pileata = having a cap, the berry being topped by a curious outgrowth of the calyx
L. sempervirens = always green
l. syringantha = the flowers resembling Syringa (Lilac)
L. xylosteum = a disused generic name from the greek xylon (wood) – the woody stems
L. tatarica
L. ciliosa
L. japonica – fruit
The common honeysuckle (L. periclymenum) is a vigorous twining plant with large cartwheel-shaped flower-heads made up of rings of curved, almost tubular shaped individual flowers, which open white, but often red-flushed, for most of the summer. The plants climb rapidly up trellis or over arches, where they associate well with climbing roses or other varieties of honeysuckle. They are also superb trained up into trees or covering old tree stumps.
Sources and further information:
Wikipedia
RHS- growing honeysuckles
BBC- Common honeysuckle
Quizzicals: answers to the two clues given in Plantax 14 …
- Cold yearning = Chile Pine
- How Jack Charlton refers to brother Bobby = Orchid
Old School Gardener
If you’ve enjoyed reading this post and others on this blog, why not comment and join others by signing up for automatic updates via email (see side bar, above right ) or through an RSS feed (see top of page)?
The Fens Waterways Link is one of the most significant waterway projects to take place in the UK for two centuries. It will connect the Cathedral cities of Lincoln, Peterborough and Ely, opening up 240km of new and existing waterways. It is hoped the project will put the Fens on the map as a nationally recognised destination, as well known as the Norfolk Broads.
Old School Garden 