Shrub

Leaves: opposite, more than twice as long as wide, tips pointed.

Flowers: in pairs, axillary. Calyx short, five-lobed. Corolla whitish, to 13 mm long, tubular, five-lobed, hairless outside. Corolla tube 4 - 5 mm long or longer, slightly hairy to hairy. Stamens five.

Fruit: a few-seeded berry, in pairs, reddish orange.

Twigs: hollow.

Form: upright.

Similar species: Lonicera ruprechtiana is similar but its corolla tube only grows to 3 mm long. Lonicera x bella is also similar, but its corolla grows over 13 mm long.

Flowering: May

Habitat and ecology: Escaped from cultivation. Widespread in waste ground, along railroads, fencerows, and woodland borders. It also grows in grazed-out woodlands.

Occurence in the Chicago region: non-native

Etymology: Lonicera is named after Adam Lonicer (1528-1586), a German botanist and author. Muendeniensis is named after the botanical garden in Munden, Germany, where this hybrid originated from the seed of Lonicera x bella.

Author: The Morton Arboretum