"Growing Honeysuckle
How easy is that?!"
 Growing honeysuckle in your garden really is easy.Honeysuckle tends to be tolerant of most conditions but will not be happy if left to dry out. Mulch and water during hot summers to keep roots damp. Likes full sun but will tolerate some shade - and will benefit from a little shade on the base of the plant when sun is very hot. Growing honeysuckle everywhere! Great for training over a trellis or archway. Have the trellis or archway in position before you plant your honeysuckle plants. Choose your variety or varieties with care. If your archway is over a seating area, you may not want to attract hundreds of bees and you should not choose a variety specifically suited to attracting bees and butterflies. Position next to pathways or use to cover a bare wall or fence.
 Varieties:Some varieties are evergreen which can be very useful for creating small hedgerows or covering a bare wall or fence in the garden. Sweet scents will attract humming birds and butterflies and the fruit will attract birds.NOTE Honeysuckle berries are highly poisonous and should never be eaten. Growing honeysuckle - Planting: If you plan on growing honeysuckle over an arbor or new fence, make sure the structure is up first before you plant the young honeysuckle plants. Plant about 2 feet (60cms) apart and around 6-12 inches (15-30cms) away from the fence. Water well and keep watering regularly until there is new growth, then check every now and again. Never let the soil totally dry out. It's a good idea to lay a mulch round the plant to prevent the roots from being attacked by frost in early spring, as well as helping to protect plants from drying out on hot summer days.
Growing honeysuckle - options:Options to consider: Evergreen or not?-Are you looking for a round-the-year cover up or a blast of scent and colour in the summer months? Pruning-Do you really want the bother? Or do you enjoy the excuse to get out in your garden in early winter with a sturdy pair of secateurs? :-) Colour-Can you colour co-ordinate your garden? Or do you like the random look? There are many beautiful shades of flowers available. If you are looking at your honeysuckle from your kitchen window every day, you want it to be a colour you like! Cost-The trouble with trying to cut costs on gardening products is that you spend more money on fuel driving from garden centre to garden centre, nearly always have a row with the spouse and never save money anyway! However, I love local garden centres and if you have a favourite close by, get to know them. See what they have to offer. Otherwise I've found a couple of good online suppliers for US and UK customers here:
Growing Honeysuckle with Crocus UK Type 'honeysuckle' (without the quotations ) into the search box on their homepage. You will be amazed at the colours!
 
And this superb 'French Honeysuckle' is available at Amazon US
 French Honeysuckle 10 Seeds - Hedysarum - Perennial
Another way to start your plants and cut down on the cost would be to ask gardening friends for cuttings from their honeysuckle plants. You can do this during the summer months. Simply cut a non-flowering shoot. Trim, all but a couple of nodules and leaves, before planting in prepared soil. Look after until big and strong! After Care:
Generally growing honeysuckle is an easy garden task. It tends to look after itself. Don't let the roots dry out though. Honeysuckle will be attacked by aphids the moment the root system starts to dry out. Keep mulched with lots of leafy matter. Many varieties of honeysuckle don't need pruning, and should be carefully tied onto supports as the vines grow longer. Use an elastic tie for this so the vine doesn't get damaged.There are some varieties that do need winter pruning. Check your variety when you buy.Prune if necessary. Watch for 'layering'. Sometimes honeysuckle will send trailers and new roots will grow as much as a metre away from the main plant. Rather like strawberries, but bigger! This is fine if you are growing honeysuckle for ground cover, but these new plants can be dug up carefully and re-positioned if necessary.
Growing honeysuckle truly is a pleasure. The strong scent is highest during hot summer days and balmy nights. The flowers attract an alarming number of flying creatures! It looks after itself very nicely... Enjoy growing honeysuckle.. become an expert!
Happy Gardening!
More "Garden" ReadingGrow Your Own Winter Food: A good diet incorporating plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables is a must if you want to stay fit and healthy and keep the bugs at bay during the cold winter months. Growing your own winter food is just one way of ensuring you get the freshest, tastiest produce packed with goodness straight from the garden to the kitchen table. This easy-to-follow self-sufficiency book shows you how to grow your own fruit and vegetables for winter use and includes facts on each fruit, vegetable or herb as well as nutritional value, recipe ideas and storage suggestions.
Grow Your Own Winter Food is perfect for those with limited gardening experience, with gardens big or small who are looking to become more self-sufficient. Order it now direct from the publisher... Grow Your Own Winter Food
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Grow It, Cook It!: Many crops, including herbs, can be produced in a relatively small space with a little pre-planning and organizing: in containers, on a balcony, and indoors. Herbs are perfect for enhancing the flavour of cooking, treating minor ailments, and preventing colds and flu. Your own back garden will not only produce the best food on the planet for you and your loved ones, it is also economical, environmentally friendly and more fun than shopping. Gardening is more than a hobby; it's a way of life. .
This book provides all the information you need to keep your family and friends healthy, fit and enjoying life to the full. Order it now direct from the publisher... Grow It, Cook It!
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Grow Your Own Pharmacy: If, like me, you want to be able to eat the best food on the planet, grow your own!
• Clear instructions on planning, planting, growing and harvesting the fruits, vegetables and herbs required for a healthy vitamin intake.
• Recipes and menus to help incorporate the fruit and vegetables into your daily diet. Grow Your Own Pharmacy
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Herbs and Spices: Some herbs grow vigorously, some are tender and need special growing conditions, some are annuals, some perennials, some you can grow indoors, all can be grown in pots or directly into the ground. There are also certain spices, such as chillies, that can be grown in temperate climates.
This clear and concise directory of herbs and spices provides all the essential information to help you grow a selection of these flavour-enhancing foods in small or large spaces. Ideas for which herbs and spices go best with which foods also accompany each description, so that you can really enliven your repertoire of recipes. Order it now direct from the publisher... Herbs and Spices
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Granny's Book Of Good Old Fashioned Common Sense is packed full of great ideas and tips. Granny brings traditional home-making up to date with cooking, gardening, needlecrafts and even games to play with the kids...Click on the link below to order your copy.
Cooking doesn’t have to be a chore and preparing nourishing home cooked meals for the family will certainly keep them away from the goodie shelf. Gardening encourages physical exercise and a good healthy dollop of fresh air. And you can get the kids involved too. Before the days of computer games and electronic pets, children used to have fun without rummaging about in the fridge every five minutes. Enjoy a few rainy-day games and crafts of yesteryear with today’s kids. They’ll love it and so will you! Granny's Book Of Good Old Fashioned Common Sense
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