SierraScape December 2004 - January 2005
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by Del Johnson and Daniel Talonn

"To Everything there is a Season-(and) a Time to Kill."

By now probably everybody knows that we have a destroyer on the loose in the St. Louis area. Its name is Lonicera maackii, known familiarly as bush honeysuckle. This invader really thrives in its new home. Specimens twenty feet tall have been reported, with multiple stems six inches in diameter. Since bush honeysuckle begins to turn green in February, it has already produced a dense leafy cover by the time our slower growing native plants are ready to blossom. Thus they cannot get the sunlight they need to grow, and in large areas of our parks and natural areas our native understory plants disappear, losing out in competition with this invader.

Caution: People who are unacquainted with the habits of bush honeysuckle may, without realizing it, be aiding and abetting this destroyer. For it can be found not only in our parks but in all too many back yards as well. How could an isolated plant or two behind my garage do any harm, if I am careful to keep it from spreading all over my yard? Unfortunately, there is a means by which bush honeysuckle spreads, not just to the immediate neighborhood, but over a distance of several miles. Because birds do like to eat those bright red berries these plants produce in the fall, they can carry the seeds relatively long distances via their droppings. By allowing one bush honeysuckle to grow in my back yard, I can be an unwitting accomplice to understory devastation in parks and natural areas.

Anyone who has tried to eliminate bush honeysuckle merely by cutting it down knows the disappointment that follows, because of this plant's propensity for sprouting. For we have a problem with bush honeysuckle almost as bad as the one Hercules had with the legendary Hydra, which grew two new heads for each head cut off! It is necessary to apply herbicide (Roundup) to the exposed stump to prevent re-growth.

When is the best time to remove bush honeysuckle? Some authorities say now is the best time, in late fall. This is the season when, as the hours of daylight shorten, plants prepare for winter by drawing sap down into the root system. These authorities argue that herbicide, if it is applied to an exposed stump in late fall, will be pulled deep down inside the plant and thus be especially effective.

Other authorities question whether the season of the year makes that much difference. Thus Daniel Talonn, EMG's veteran of the honeysuckle wars, asserts that "bush honeysuckle roots can be killed year-around. I did a study two years ago and showed that I could get good kills, even in the winter," Daniel says. He moreover states that "kills can be achieved by spraying the foliage (assuming the bush is not too large)." For this Daniel uses a spray of Roundup herbicide of 2-4% concentration. Stumps and roots however require a more concentrated 20% solution.

It would appear that, when it comes to dealing with bush honeysuckle, just about any season of the year is a good "time to kill."