Honeysuckle (Lonicera periclymenum)

Lonicera periclymenum, common honeysuckle, is Shakespeare's "luscious woodbine". It's one of those British plants that looks so exotic it's difficult to believe it's native. It's not just a beauty visually, but gives a heady scent, particularly in the evenings and at night. Why? Because it's principally pollinated by long tongued bumblebees, but more importantly moths, like the stunning Elephant Hawk Moth. They're said to be able to pick up Lonicera's scent from up to 1/4 mile away. Unsurprisingly perhaps, it's also a food plant for a range of moth larvae. More oddly, dormice eat its flowers. Once pollinated, honeysuckle produces bright red berries, which are eaten by songbirds. Our lonicera plants are grown in the UK from seed harvested here, like all our native plants. Scroll down to find out more about them.