Southern bush honeysuckle

Description

Diervilla sessilifolia, the southern bush honeysuckle, a member of the honeysuckle family Caprifoliaceae which blooms in summer, is a perennial shrub found in the Great Smoky Mountains and the southern Appalachian Mountains. Southern bush honeysuckle can be found growing on bluffs, along slopes and stream banks, and bordering woodlands. It is a threatened species in Tennessee. This compact, deciduous shrub, typically growing three to five feet tall, spreads by suckering in zones 4 to 8.It is drought tolerant, grows in full sun as well as partial shade, and works best in a woodland garden. D. sessilifolia has been marked as a pollinator plant, supporting and attracting bumblebees and hummingbirds. Diervilla, or bush honeysuckle, is a genus of three species of deciduous shrubs in the family Caprifoliaceae, all indigenous to eastern North America. The genus is named after a French surgeon Dr. Marin Diereville, who introduced the plant to Europe around 1700. The bush honeysuckles are low in height (1–2 m), of small to medium diameter (1–2 m), and develop into colonies by means of spreading underground rhizomes. Their leaves are simple, opposite and either oval or lanceolate in shape with a toothed edge. The fall color varies between yellow, orange and red. Small tubular flowers, typically pale yellow, are produced in June and July. Other species formerly included in Diervilla are now treated in the genus Weigela. The bush honeysuckles are commonly confused with the common wild honeysuckle (Lonicera tatarica), or the Japanese honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica), both members of the closely related genus Lonicera. The British Diervilla national collection is held at Sheffield Botanical Gardens; along with the national collection of the closely related genus Weigela. Diervilla species are used as food plants by the larvae of some Lepidoptera species including the common emerald and the engrailed moths.