Diervilla lonicera
Sponsor
Kindly sponsored by
The Normanby Charitable Trust
Credits
Tom Christian & David Purvis (2025)
Recommended citation
Christian, T. & Purvis, D. (2025), 'Diervilla lonicera' from the website Trees and Shrubs Online (treesandshrubsonline.
Common Names
- Northern Bush Honeysuckle
Synonyms
- Diervilla canadensis Willd.
- Diervilla humilis Pers.
Infraspecifics
Other taxa in genus
Shrub to 1.5 m, spreading with stolons and horizontal roots, stems slightly tapering, hairless, rounded. Leaves 5–12 cm long × up to 6.5 cm wide, oblong-lanceolate to ovate-lanceolate, apex acute-acuminate, margins ciliate, blade otherwise glabrous, base tapered or shallowly cordate, petiole > 5 mm. Cymes few-flowered, terminal ones 3– or 5-flowered, axilliary ones often 1-flowered, flowers pale yellow, darkening with age, 1.2–2 cm long. Calyx lobes glabrous, needle-like, 3–4 mm. Fruit capsule long-pointed, vase-shaped (Bean 1981; Cullen et al. (eds) 2011).
Distribution Canada Eastern Provinces United States From Virginia and West Virginia south to North Carolina and Tennessee, westward to Indiana and Kentucky.
Habitat In open woodlands and rocky habitats, often at higher elevations in the southern part of its range.
USDA Hardiness Zone 5a
RHS Hardiness Rating H7
For a general discussion see the genus article.
'Copper'
The new growth on this clone is coloured copper to bronze, becoming green as the growth matures through the season. Autumn colours in the yellow-orange range (Hatch 2017).
'Dilon'
A small, compact, low but spreading variety with coppery young growth. Selected and introduced by Mike Yanny of Johnson’s Nursery, Wisconsin, from cuttings obtained from Jewel Nursery in the 1980s.
'Grepofl'
Synonyms / alternative names
Diervilla lonicera POLAR FLARE™
A paricularly hardy form (to USDA zone 3) with leaves emerging dark burgundy and turning green with age (gardendebut.com accessed 05/08/2025).
'Wilbraham'
Considered a superior form of the species by Jeff Thompson and Tom Dilatush. Thompson named it ‘Wilbraham’ after its place of origin (Wilbraham, Massachusetts) (summerhillnursery.com accessed 05/08/2025).