Lonicera flava

Lonicera flava is a species of honeysuckle native to the central and eastern United States. It is a woody vine with yellow-orange flowers that are slightly fragrant.

Description

Lonicera flava is a vine that twines or climbs on other vegetation or structures or trails along the ground, with a length up to about. Its gray bark becomes shredded as it ages. Leaves are simple with smooth margins and opposite, measuring long and wide. They are elliptic in shape, and the uppermost 1 or 2 pairs of leaves are fused around the stem. The upper surface of the leaves is bright green, and the underside is paler green or gray.
The flowers are yellow to orange, growing in terminal clusters. They are tubular and about long and have protruding stamens. The fruit is a red or reddish-orange berry.

Etymology

The genus name Lonicera honors the German physician and botanist Adam Lonitzer, and the specific epithet flava is Latin for "yellow".

Distribution and habitat

L. flava is native in the United States in Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Tennessee. The plant grows in dry to mesic upland woods and forests, along stream banks, on bluffs, and at the margins of glades.

Ecology

The flowers bloom April to May, and the berries appear August to September. Hummingbirds and butterflies are attracted to the flowers, and birds and small mammals eat the berries.