These are photos of my Red Trumpet Honeysuckle (Lonicera semprevirens) today. It looks like I have the same problem some other people have posted about!





What is the final consensus? Aphids (my ladybugs missed) or excessive wet weather? Or both? Or something else?

Any suggestions on what to do? Once this bloom is over I plant to trim off all the flowers and give the plant a shot of flower-encouraging fertilzer, for hopefully a second bloom in warmer (and maybe dryer) weather.

Here's a better-looking Red Trumpet Honeysuckle at Bartram's Garden in Philadelphia (taken first Saturday in May, 2006). I bought my plant at their native plant sale so mine may be related - though you wouldn't know it, with how mine looks now! But who knows what they spray theirs with to look so good?



Here's a close-up of the same plant, taken in August 2006. Note the healthy flowers! But again - what are they spraying it with?? I have to go and ask sometime! Also note, it is blooming in late August - the "properties" on this photo says it was taken August 26, 2006. Someone knows what they are doing there - but is it a hummer-friendly (non-toxic) solution?



Wilmington, Delaware
USDA zone 7a
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 32

I'm not so sure about the wet weather? We got a solid week of rain, and here's mine:



That IS baffling? I'll wait on the experts here...

Maryjane
W Ga
Zone 8a

Truly sorry Ron

Had you noticed any aphids on your plant previous to now. Your blooms certainly look like mine did when I first noticed aphids blooms curled. Your leaves like mine still look healthy. I went ahead and cliped most of my blooms off but I did have two or three sets that looked ok and not curled. BTW Im not calling myself an expert of any kind in this matter as I dont really know the answer. I too hope someone with the answer kicks in on this post.

Steve
Martinsville, In
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 35

Steve,

You are correct - my leaves are healthy - just the flowers look bad. It could indeed be aphids. I applied my ladybugs maybe a little too early this year and I noticed aphids even after they left. Also, of course, ladybugs are not 100% effective.

I'll probably do like you - cut off the "infected" blooms. I'm hearing folks say insecticidal soap works on these aphids so I will douse it with that once the flowers are removed. Then when new flowers start budding I may either re-apply the soap or get more ladybugs. Of course, I won't spray any soap once flowers start to open.

I wish they'd invent some systemic insecticides that were proven safe for birds but I wouldn't trust anything on the market now. The government barely has funding to properly test anything anymore and I don't trust the chemical companies.

Wilmington, Delaware
USDA zone 7a
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 32

Ron

Im also guessing that after the you had the ladybugs and they left you had more eggs hatch. Dont know if our plants will re-bloom lets hope they will, but Ive had this problem at least the last two years. So this fall when the plant goes dormant after a couple of freezes , Im taking Penny's advise and cutting my plant way back no leaves or side branches hoping to get rid of all the aphid eggs. I too am totally against any insecticide where hummers feed.

I dont know this for a fact but I have read that aphids will leave a substance where they have been and it may be the secretions that does the real damage. Its just a theory , stabbing in the dark now I guess. So even if you get rid of the aphids the blooms just dont have a chance.

Steve
Martinsville, In
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 35

Lets hope that it is just aphids and not a blight that is going to ruin all of our plants around the country.

Penny
Niagara Falls, NY
USDA zone 6a/6b
Heat zone 4
Sunset zone 39

Whoa!...Penny, bite your tongue and knock on wood!!! A honeysuckle blight?!?! NOOOO!!!

The blooms look like mine least year after some wet weather and aphids nailed them. They've recovered perfectly fine this year. Maybe try deadheading the affected bloom clusters and it'll send out a better flush of growth.

Zone 7B
North Carolina Piedmont

I'm with Matt...Yikes!
Goodness, between your pics and Steve's, wondering what the culprit actually is...

Susan Louise
from Branford CT/ live in Lincoln NE
Zone 5

I've been using the Safer Soap and it kills the aphids, but DOES NOT save the buds, they bloom cruddy looking and blackish. I have to update the other thread where I thought I had 25% damaged blooms to 75% healthy blooms. Its more like the aphids are winning the war. I went out there today and wanted to cry after several days of rain. Most NEW buds have aphids and if I spray them, that will not allow the buds to bloom. I'm trying a different organic bug killer, but am not too hopeful at this point. I guess honeysuckles HAVE TO BE CUT down after 5 six years. Mine is about 8-9 years old and this is the third year the aphids have attacked it horribly.

Pam NJ 6B

OMG, sometime I just have an appiphany. About an hour after you use the soap, hose the plant down real good! Than all the dead black bugs will be washed off the buds and there will be no more soap left on the buds. DUH!!!!! Hopefully than the buds will be able to BLOOM!!! We will see in the next few days.

AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! NEVER GIVE UP!!!

Pam NJ 6B

Ron, I will say it does look like Aphid dammage. I have 2 Goldflames I bought last year and they where only about 10 to 12 inches. They grew wonderfully first year and fantastic this year. Anyways, I planted bothe of them next to each other to fill out a trellis. One of them was attacked big time by aphids and the other wasn't, and they are right next to each other. I will get a picture of them a little later as they both are getting ready to bloom. The aphid infested one will look like, excuse my languge, CRAP.

Now to the question of aphid damage on older plants. I also have a older goldflame about 20" away from the damaged one and no problems.

I sprayed the infected one with blasts of water from a water bottle. I got them all over my hands because I held each bloom to spray them. Just plain water. The next day I only saw a few, which I sprayed. So far so good.

birdlegs
zone 5
S.E. Lower MI.

What KILLS me is all these invasive run-of-the mill Japanese Honeysuckles are blooming like crazy around here with no problems!



I'm not sure if this is all just Lonicera japonica or some other species. Someone told me there is a shrub type too - maybe with a different latin name - anyone know?



Notice the leaves on some of these have a pointy tip - and these are shrubby I think and not all just vines, on top of other plants. Are these something other than Lonicera japonica? I thought Lonicera japonica had rounded leaves?



These were all taken on a nature reserve or state park near me, in northern Delaware. I am assuming they are some exotic invasive and that taking a few cuttings would be ethically allowable - But whatever! - one way or the other, I'm getting a few of these going in my garden! They might have some aphids but they are doing pretty good!



I have always theorized that the lack of hummers in late May is because these are blooming all over the place and must taste better than my feeder solution!

Wilmington, Delaware
USDA zone 7a
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 32

I agree with your theory.

Dianne
Southeast Alabama
Heat Zone 8
Sunset Zone 31

Sandy-- I wish you luck on yours and hope they turn out beautifull, but thats also the way mine started, thought I had them on the run, using the spray bottle and blasting them out but then , well you saw my photos. I have since clipped off all my blooms off that had even a hint of not looking right and we shall see what happens.

Ron, that looks like lonicera japonica to me; the leaves are variable in general. I would highly recommend reconsidering trying to take a cutting of it for your garden, unless you want your garden overrun by this monster (and it IS a horrible monster that you will never, ever, get rid of if it gets established).

Those blooms, so lovely, fragrant, and aphid-free, only bloom for a few weeks. That's compared to the natives, which can bloom for months on end. So please resist!...it's not worth it for your garden or your hummers!

Zone 7B
North Carolina Piedmont

I'm not sure if I agree that this is Japanese Honeysuckle. What I am taking about is a shrub. The viney type can be horrible but this isn't a vine.

And I wasn't talking about putting this in the middle of my garden. I was thinking was off in it's own corner.

Wilmington, Delaware
USDA zone 7a
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 32

The blooms look exactly like lonicera japonica, and the leaves are pretty close. It appears by the profuse blooms that this is in full sun or close to it, and the leaves of l. japonica look different depending upon the sun exposure they get. My money's still on that ID.

But I don't have as much experience with the invasive honeysuckle shrubs, so I can't be positive. But I can be positive that you DON'T want this in your garden no matter what type of lonicera it is!

Zone 7B
North Carolina Piedmont

Well, a google search turned up Amur honeysuckle, lonicera maackii, which is a shrub honeysuckle that looks a lot like this. Very invasive like its japonica cousin.

Amur Honeysuckle Link.

Zone 7B
North Carolina Piedmont

Matt,

You found out what it is !! You the man !!

Despite it's invasiveness, I still might grow a cutting of it for my garden. It's common in the woods here already and anyway, I am smack in middle of suburbs and not close to any honeysuckle-free natural area to introduce it to.

Wilmington, Delaware
USDA zone 7a
Heat zone 6
Sunset zone 32

Well I just finished cutting nearly all the buds off my species honeysuckle. Even with spraying them with water there were still hundreds of those nasty critters destroying the flower buds and the leaves so off they came. The dropmore has a few more blooms but not many.

Penny
Niagara Falls, NY
USDA zone 6a/6b
Heat zone 4
Sunset zone 39

Makes you want to cry, huh Penney?

Pam NJ 6B

Same problem here in western PA, and it does make you wanna cry. I have Lonicera sempervirens 'Alabama Crimson.'

I thought Penny had licked her problem by cutting the plant back severely, but how discouraging to hear that it didn't work. Was it you, Penny, who has a friend who cuts hers back in the fall, practically to the ground, and says it solves the aphid problem the following spring? Your experience would cast doubt on that idea, because it sounds like your plant has gotten reinfested. How discouraging!

I wonder if aphids can spread disease, too? I don't think mine are diseased, but most of my flowers are curved and deformed. I, too, have used the Safer Soap and it has helped. You have to get to the buds very, very early, before they've even opened, and you have to keep up with it, religiously, every week or so. I had this same problem last year, and eventually it corrected itself. I think the natural predators eventually catch up by the summer, and the aphids get reduced in number. This has really been a horrible year for aphids!

Pam yes it does but I would rather remove those affected buds now along with the aphids and lessen the chance of them spreading even more. Hopefully I will get some blooms this year.

Penny
Niagara Falls, NY
USDA zone 6a/6b
Heat zone 4
Sunset zone 39

My Friend, who cuts her honeysuckle back each fall got blasted with aphids this spring also. We had a big discussion about it on Sunday at the plant swap. Someone did say that because we have had such a long cold and dry spring this year that is what has caused the aphids to get out of control. Lady bugs weren't much help this year because of the cold weather and bird that would naturally feed on them were more interested in getting their fill at the feeders. I supposed it is just a natural cycle that we have to endure. Hopefully next year will be better.

Penny
Niagara Falls, NY
USDA zone 6a/6b
Heat zone 4
Sunset zone 39