Leaf
Salicyna, Wikimedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
Southern bush honeysuckle
Diervilla sessilifolia (Michx.) Kunze
Also known as: Bush honeysuckle
Family: Caprifoliaceae
60 cm to 1.20 m tall
Planted in borders or as ground cover, ordinary soils
Flowering: June – August
Full sun
Part shade
Hardy, to about -25°C
❓ How do you recognise this plant?
Southern bush honeysuckle suckers readily by its creeping rhizomes, gradually forming a dense ground cover — a behaviour that makes it a good alternative to conventional ground covers on banks that are hard to maintain.
🍃 Leaves
Deciduous, ovate, toothed, sometimes tinged with bronze
🌸 Flowers
Yellow, tubular, grouped in small clusters in the leaf axils
🍎 Fruits
Small dry capsule
🪵 Bark
Fine reddish-brown stems, suckering readily
🗺️ Distribution
Native to the south-eastern United States; planted in France as a border or ground-cover shrub
🐝 Value for pollinators
Summer flowering rich in nectar, visited by bees and butterflies
✂️ Horticultural uses
Suckering ground-cover shrub, planted for its yellow summer flowers and colourful autumn foliage
⚠️ Possible toxicity
No notable toxicity known
🌿 Other Caprifoliaceae to discover
ℹ️ Educational profile — do not use it to judge whether a plant is edible or safe.
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