Honeysuckle

To most people, when they think of honeysuckle, they think of a bush with sweet smelling flowers in the spring. To many landowners the honeysuckle bush is an invasive plant that can take over hedgerows and fields.

The sweet smelling flowers of spring are now ripening into bright red berries. Birds find the honeysuckle berries a tasty treat and birds are the main source for spreading the honeysuckle seeds.




The honeysuckle bushes look very pretty this time of year, with the clusters of red berries against the deep green foliage.

While bird may be able to eat the berries, humans eating a few honeysuckle berries will likely result in a bit of upset stomach. If large quantities of potentially poisonous berries are ingested, a person may experience nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and rapid heartbeat.



The thick, dense foliage of the honeysuckle bushes can soon take over and crowd out other native plants. I have a hedgerow where the honeysuckle bushes have grown 30 feet into a field and stand up to 15 feet tall. The honeysuckle bushes are so thick that other plants can't grow in this area. I plan to remove these bushes by pulling them out and try to regain more of the field.