Honeysuckle ?

[edprocoat]

In Ohio they seem to be everywhere and most consider them an obnoxious weed. I wonder if any have used them as Bonsai material. They have small leaves and white flowers in the spring developing into red berries that look like pyracantha fruits. They have a very gnarly fissured bark in just a few years, they grow like a weed. They can be cut down to the ground and come back and they are spread by birds eating teh fruit and when they do not deposit them on your windshield they grow. I have seen them develop three inch wide trunks in 2 years and be about 7-8 feet tall. They grow either single trunks or multiple trunks, the ones in shde or undercover grow single trunks and get taller fast while the ones near fences with plenty of sun seem to be multiple thin trunks and less height.

ed

 

[coh]

Bill Valavanis has a nice one (it's the only honeysuckle bonsai I've seen in person). There's a photo on the bonsai study group forum at http://bonsaistudygroup.com/deciduous-bonsai-discussion/winter-silhouettes/30/ (you must be a member to see the images). I've also seen some posted on IBC.

I've got them all over my yard and have been thinking about trying to collect one. Supposedly they're pretty easy to collect.

Chris

 

[edprocoat]

Coh you are right that is a beautiful tree. I had to register to see it but man was it worth it.
There are so many here in Ohio I think I will do my first collection of one next spring.

ed

 

[painter]

ive got one, for three years , havent had it flower yet. tough as nails, but sheds branches
many of other club members have good ones , have yet to see a great one. all collected , with many multiple trunks.
best to try clip and grow, and dont prune too late in the season, you will loose that branch. maybe i will post a pic later in the week.
they will grow if collected in spring basically without many roots, jsut let it grow the first season to gain strength and put light wiring, the branches stiffen quickly.
need to carve and apply wood hardener otherwise the stump rots
p

 

[Brian Van Fleet]

The first trees I collected were honeysuckle in Iowa, interestingly the one I brought to AL with me didn't flow until it got here. I've since gifted it to a member of the club, but it was among my first trees, collected in '94-95.

The branches are hollow, so wiring while they're green, or after they're lignified is important or they break. They also look great until June, then terrible after summer hardens off the leaves. In my experience, they're tough as nails and make good bonsai.

 

[pkTheory]

Lonicera japonica 'Japanese honeysuckle' is a USDA labeled invasive species. Particularly invasive here in zone 7b. Japanese Honeysuckle has white to yellow flowers while our Georgia native Lonicera sempervirens 'Trumpet honeysuckle', sometimes called Coral honeysuckle, has long tube shaped red flowers.

In my experience with them heavy pruning impedes flowering. However they grow so vigorously that they make a good practice specimen. Honeysuckle's have delicious nectar you can eat off the stamen of the flowers, but don't eat its poisonous berries.

 

[art-rodriguez]

honeysukle bonsai

i think honeysuckle make great bonsai trees.
check out my collected honeysuckle tree which was acquired from a fellow enthusiast from idaho.

 

[gallina1594]

Found my dwarf honey suckle in the "make an offer" pile! I'm ready to give it a better home with some better soil, any tips?

 

[sorce]

Found my dwarf honey suckle in the "make an offer" pile! I'm ready to give it a better home with some better soil, any tips?

Use a retentive soil and don't worry much about cutting stuff off to get it at a proper angle.

Sorce

 

[Forsoothe!]

ive got one, for three years , havent had it flower yet. tough as nails, but sheds branches
many of other club members have good ones , have yet to see a great one. all collected , with many multiple trunks.
best to try clip and grow, and dont prune too late in the season, you will loose that branch. maybe i will post a pic later in the week.
they will grow if collected in spring basically without many roots, jsut let it grow the first season to gain strength and put light wiring, the branches stiffen quickly.
need to carve and apply wood hardener otherwise the stump rots
p

Yes, hard to guide growth, long internodes, flowers on the tips of last year's growth so keeping a long internode tree compact defeats flowering, short-lived branches (relatively). I had a hybrid that had really nice tiny red flowers, which I saw very few of keeping it compact. Not worth my effort, but choice is a very individual thing, so go for it.