Species-Specific Management (SSM)

Honeysuckle

Introduced before 1860, primarily for erosion control, the Japanese honeysuckle, Lonicera japonica, is considered by some people to be a forest pest, an aid to forest development by others. It is eaten by at least 14 wildlife species and is favored in some areas by deer. It has an important role as cover. It provides erosion control in many areas and its beauty and spring fragrance must surely be considered benefits. It competes with young timber in 10 percent of forest land from Georgia to Maryland. Foresters have concluded that, from a practical viewpoint, it cannot be eradicated. It can be controlled after trees grow over and shade it, thus holding it in check. It is one reality to be faced along with clearcutting in some areas and may be sufficient to prevent such practice, requiring, instead, group and single-tree selection cuts to assure control by shading. Most honeysuckle (e.g., in South Carolina (Craver 1982)) occurs in the Piedmont but it is widespread within the forests of the southern Appalachians. Greatest abundance is in abandoned cropland, rolling uplands (a suitable well-drained soil moisture excluding deep sands). Percent of tree stocking has an effect on density, not occurrence, of honeysuckle. It increases in stands over 80 years in relation to understory light.

The plant seems to prefer better sites, loam-associated soils, and planted acres (slightly). Large "impenetrable" mats occur in some areas (Stransky 1984). Regenerating an infested pine stand using brush-hogging and planted seedlings worked best among planting, direct seeding, and natural seeding (69% seedling survival) but tree suppression occurred. Disking with natural regeneration was successful (McLemore 1984). Velpar herbicide was more effective than mechanical suppression in achieving height and large ground-line diameters on new trees.

Volume occupied in South Carolina forests ranged from 1422 cubic feet per acre (100 cubic meters/ha) to 26, 176 cubic feet per acre (1932 cubic meters/ha). The average was 12,813 cubic feet per acre (897 cubic meters/ha).

In a study conducted near Nacogdoches, Texas, Japanese honeysuckle grown in an open field was nearly 8 times more prolific than honeysuckle grown beneath a forest of shortleaf (Pinus echinata) and loblolly pine (P. taeda) (Hall and Alcaniz 1968). Current twig growth per plant (cm) for open field honeysuckle was 8,369 and 1,009 beneath trees.

In a study on seasonality of nutrient quality and digestibility of Japanese honeysuckle, it was found that seasonal variations in nutrient quality and metabolic usefulness of leaves and twigs are closely associated with plant growth and tissue maturation. During rapid spring growth, leaves and twigs were most succulent and their dry matter fraction was highest in nutrition and digestibility. During the summer, as twig growth slowed, fiber deposition increased in maturing tissues and quality and digestibility declined. Twigs expressed this decline to a greater degree than leaves. Throughout the year, leaves generally were significantly higher in nutrient quality and digestibility than twigs.

The mean difference between green and oven-dry weights of samples of honeysuckle from plots of a loblolly pine plantation in Illinois was 48 percent. No significant difference existed between the logarithm of the mean difference and the logarithm of each sample difference. Therefore, green weight can be used to estimate production for wildlife or range management purposes.

Literature Cited

Cain, M. D. 1985. Japanese honeysuckle and associated ground cover inhibit establishment and growth of pine seedlings in all-aged stands. p. 300-304 in 3rd Biennial Southern Silvicultural Research Conf., Atlanta GA 1984. U.S.D.A. Forest Service Gen. Tech. Rpt. SO-54, New Orleans, LA.

Craver, G. C. 1982. Multiresource inventories.. a technique for determining the distribution and extent of honeysuckle on commercial forest land in South Carolina. U.S.D.A. For. Serv. Res. Note SE-317, Southeastern For. Exp. Sta., Asheville, NC. 11 pp.

Halls, L. K., and R. Alcaniz. 1965b. Seasonal twig growth of southern browse plants. USDA Forest Serv. Res. Note S0-23. 5 p.

Halls, L. K., and R. Alcaniz. 1968. Browse plants yeild best in forest openings. J. Wildl. Manage. 32(1):185-186.

McLemore, B. F. 1995. Comparison of three methods for regenerating-honeysuckle-infested openings in uneven-aged pine stands, p. 97-99 in 3rd Biennial Southern Silvicultural Research Conf., Atlanta GA 1984. U.S.D.A. Forest Service Gen. Tech. Rpt. SO-54, New Orleans, LA.

Stransky, J. J. 1984. Forage yield of Japanese honeysuckle with repeated burning or mowing. J. Wildl. Manage. 37(3):237-238.

Robert H. Giles, Jr.

This Web site is maintained by R. H. Giles, Jr.
Last revision January 17, 2000.