Family: Caprifoliaceae

Common name: Honeysuckle (orange & hairy)

E-flora BC: https://linnet.geog.ubc.ca/Atlas/Atlas.aspx?sciname=Lonicera%20ciliosa & https://linnet.geog.ubc.ca/Atlas/Atlas.aspx?sciname=Lonicera%20hispidula

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lonicera_ciliosa & https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lonicera_hispidula

Two species of honeysuckle are commonly found around Nanaimo. For the purposes of BIOL 223 – Botany, I just want you to be able to recognize that these are honeysuckle plants of the genus Lonicera, but I’ll describe both species since you’re likely to run into them on your forays across our parks and lands.

Honeysuckles belong to the family Caprifoliaceae. As such, they have a few characteristics in common with the other Caprifoliaceae members described on this website, namely snowberry (Symphoricarpos albus) and twinflower (Linnaea borealis):

  • The stem is round (no ridges).
  • The leaves are arranged in an opposite pattern along the stem.
  • Both honeysuckles and snowberry make clusters of fruit, where the berries are bunched together tightly at the ends of branches.

Honeysuckles have trailing, twining stems. Orange honeysuckle (L. ciliosa) tends to twine around and climb high up into shrubs and trees. Hairy honeysuckle (L. hispidula) is usually found trailing along the ground and forming tangled thickets here and there. It might climb into a shrub, but usually not as high into the foliage as orange honeysuckle does.

Both species of honeysuckle are found in the woods, or at edges of forests, though hairy honeysuckle (L. hispidula) tends to be found in slightly drier habitats.

Stem and leaves of orange honeysuckle (L. ciliosa). Note the opposite leaf arrangement and the smooth round stem. The leaves of orange honeysuckle have slight, short hairs along the margins, but are much less hairy than those of hairy honeysuckle.
Photo credit: Douglas Fraser
As for orange honeysuckle, note the oppositely arranged leaves and the smooth stem of hairy honeysuckle. Longer hairs are visible along the leaf margin.
Photo credit: Douglas Fraser
The end-pair of leaves on a stem is joined to form a distinctive disc. As indicated by the flower colour, we’re looking at orange honeysuckle (L. ciliosa) here. You might be able to tell that this specimen is climbing on an oceanspray shrub (Holodiscus discolor). This photo was taken on the Nanaimo VIU campus, right behind building 355.
Same as for orange honeysuckle above, the end-pair of leaves on the stem are joined into a disc. The pink flower colour indicates that this is hairy honeysuckle (L. hispidula). Photo credit: Douglas Fraser
While orange honeysuckle usually climbs high into, and hangs off, large shrubs or small trees, hairy honeysuckle tends to trail along the ground and, here and there, tangle up into thickets, as shown in this photograph. Photo credit: Douglas Fraser
Berries on orange honeysuckle. Note how the berries are bunched up together at the end of the stem – compare this to the fruit arrangement on the related snowberry (Symphoricarpos albus). Honeysuckle berries are a good food source for birds, but not humans.
Photo credit: Jackie-Dee via Flickr
Berries of hairy honeysuckle – bunched up together at the ends of the stem.
Photo credit: Marc Kummel via Flickr
Both species of honeysuckle can be pollinated by hummingbirds. Here, an Anna’s hummingbird (Calypte anna) is enjoying the nectar from hairy honeysuckle flowers.
Photo credit: Andrew Reding via Flickr