Honeysuckle: how to grow the scented flower

Honeysuckle (Lonicera periclymenum)

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Honeysuckle (Lonicera periclymenum) is one of the easiest plants to find in the wild, since its strong, sweet scent hangs on the air. Native to most of Europe, it is a common sight and smell in our woodlands and hedgerows in summer, twining itself around trees and scrub and luring a wide variety of wildlife. In A Midsummer Night's Dream, Oberon describes Titania's sleeping place as 'quite overcanopied with luscious woodbine'. It is certainly a plant fit for a queen, since each of the flowerheads resembles a crown of cream and gold, formed of a ring of tubular blooms.

In the garden, honeysuckles are very useful, being one of the least demanding climbers for partial shade and can be grown in any size of outdoor space. Since they don't require a huge amount of pruning, they can be grown through other plants. Their scent enchants the scene – especially at dusk, when it intensifies – so once you've grown one honeysuckle, you may find yourself planting more.

L. periclymenum

Didier Veillon

Are honeysuckles good for wildlife?

Summer-flowering honeysuckles are wonderful wildlife plants for the garden. The very slender flowers are pollinated by moths (such as the stunning elephant hawk-moth and broad-bordered bee hawk-moth), using their long tongue-like proboscis, and honeysuckle perfume is stronger at night in order to attract them. Some moths and butterflies – including the buff ermine and the white admiral – need honeysuckle as a food plant for their caterpillars.

During the day, the blooms are visited by long-tongued bumblebees. After the flowers come the glossy red berries, which are eaten by birds, including bullfinches; once a climbing honeysuckle matures, it provides excellent shelter and nesting sites for birds, particularly if it is evergreen or semi-evergreen. L. periclymenum is also a vital plant for dormice because its bark is the main material they use to build their nests (after shredding it), and they eat the flowers.

The offspring of our native woodbine (Lonicera periclymenum) are the best varieties to buy for perfume. L. periclymenum 'Graham Thomas' is a good choice, producing a mass of gold and ivory flowers that fill the garden with scent from midsummer to early autumn. For a longer performance, grow both L. periclymenum 'Belgica' (which flowers from May to June) and L. periclymenum'Serotina' (it kicks off in July and blooms into October); both have raspberry and cream flowers, followed by scarlet berries. All three are vigorous deciduous climbers, capable of 6 metres or more. For a small space, the more compact L. periclymenum 'Scentsation' has an abundance of lemon and primrose flowers with a knockout scent, but only grows to 3 metres.

However, following the current fashion for naturalistic, wild gardening, you may prefer to plant the species itself, which never lacks magic.

There are honeysuckles that bloom in the cold depths of winter, filling the frozen garden with incredible perfume. These must-have plants look nothing like their summer-flowering climber cousins, being bushy shrubs with small flowers. Both Lonicera x purpusii ‘Winter Beauty’ and L. fragrantissima are excellent: growing to around 2 metres, they can be trained against a wall to save space, either in sun or semi-shade; from January to March, their bare branches are dotted with small white flowers that flood the air with a lovely honey scent and provide nectar for winter-foraging bees. Sprigs can also be cut to scent the house.

Lonicera japonica, from Asia, is an evergreen or semi-evergreen climber, except in very cold winters, in which it may be deciduous. Although its varieties aren't always as fragrant as the L. periclymenum types, they still have wonderful perfume and bloom over a long period, from spring to late summer. White and yellow L. japonica 'Hall's Prolific' is floriferous from a young age; L. japonica 'Halliana' has a strong scent; L. japonica var. repens bears pink and pale amber flowers; and L. japonica 'Purpurea' has bronze-tinted leaves in winter. In the right conditions, Japanese honeysuckle can be extremely vigorous and has become invasive in parts of the US. In British gardens, its hybrids are likely to grow to between 4 and 8 metres.

Another good semi-evergreen choice is L. x heckrottii 'Gold Flame', which has deliciously fragrant rhubarb and custard flowers in summer, followed by red berries. Having a shrubby habit, it must be tied in to help it climb.

Select a site in semi-shade or dappled shade for climbing honeysuckles. Provide the plant with something to climb up or through – this could be anything from trellis or wires attached to a wall to an arch or pergola. Honeysuckle can also be grown through other plants, such as large shrubs or rambling roses, trees (with low branches to wind through), or mixed hedging. If you want to enjoy the scent, grow it over a porch or close to windows, so that the smell drifts into the house on warm nights.

Close up of common honeysuckle (lonicera periclymenum) flowers in bloomTom Meaker

Yes, most widely available honeysuckles are hardy down to -10°C or -20°C and require very little TLC to keep them performing. In the coldest regions, Lonicera periclymenum and L. caprifolium are the hardiest species. Both have incredible perfume.

Honeysuckle can be planted at any time of year, but, ideally, plant evergreen honeysuckles in autumn or spring, and plant deciduous forms in winter.

Dig a hole 45 to 60 centimetres from the structure the honeysuckle is going to climb. The soil should be moisture retentive and well-drained, so fork in organic matter (such as leaf mould or compost) before planting. Angle the climber towards whatever you want it to climb and leave the bamboo canes (or other support) it is growing around in situ, if the stems aren't long enough to tie in yet. If the stems are long, trim them by a quarter to a third to stimulate fresh growth from the base. Water in, then mulch around the base of the plant with organic matter.

For patio pots, select a dwarf form, such as L. periclymenum 'Strawberries and Cream', which has a good scent. The winter honeysuckles, mentioned above, can also be enjoyed in containers.

• WATER young plants, especially during hot, dry weather, until established.
• MULCH around the base of the plant (for instance, with leafmould or compost) once a year, in spring.
• BERRIES should follow the flowers, if you don't deadhead the flowers.
• PRUNE early-flowering honeysuckles after flowering (in late summer or autumn), and prune late-flowering forms in spring. Remove sick, weak, congested, or dead growth, as necessary; you can prune harder (by around a third, if need be) in late summer or autumn, but only a light trim is required for the early bloomers in spring.
• REVIVE an old, tired honeysuckle by cutting it down hard (to 60 to 90 centimetres above the ground) in late autumn or winter. Mulch afterwards.

Honeysuckles can fall prey to powdery mildew in places where the air flow is poor and the soil is dry. In such a site, try growing L. similis var. delavayi, which is said to have good mildew resistance, or prevent the mildew by removing fallen leaves, mulching annually, and watering in hot, dry weather. Some honeysuckles (especially the unscented colourful forms) readily become infested with aphids. When the flies are black, it can look unsightly, but the plant usually recovers itself without any intervention. The aphids can be removed and squished by hand, and aphid predators (such as ladybirds and hoverflies) can be lured by planting lots of single-flowered Tagetes and Calendula marigolds as summer bedding.