The Furtive Honeysuckle Rose

 

In the South, honeysuckle is a weed that produces berries and nostalgic stories. However, wild honeysuckle berries tend to be toxic.

Ranger Bob grew up with the scent of honeysuckle near his bedroom window. He is doing very well, by the way. 

Bob yelled this question, "You paid for a weed? Honeysuckle is a weed and you paid for it?" Mr. Gardener likewise told me he spent a lot of time removing honeysuckle from our green alley. I countered, "But it requires sun." 

I bought two and protected them from rabbits and squirrels last summer. This summer my all-around fixit guy brought cow squares over to serve as honeysuckle frames on the sunny side of the house. The first one took quickly. 

The second one was protected and replanted in the sunniest spot of all the garden areas - the 
Butterfly Garden - a resounding success for butterfly plants, beyond all hopes.

I let honeysuckle.2 grow up using other pollinator plants to give them a natural prop. If honeysuckle was as promiscuous as the garden experts say, it would find its way to the sun, emerging from darkness. I let the gardening crew edit the Butterfly Garden without getting nervous. The honeysuckle.2 was growing on the outer edge, but what if...? 

I watered this morning for the Sunday altar flowers, and peeked around the corner for a hint of honeysuckle. I spotted a spare sprig and felt great. The root system would soon send up feelers for more honeysuckle, no matter what. 

Jamming

I am glad Monty Don encourages jamming flowers together and editing them down later. I am filled with awe about the spread of the garden areas. Rain has helped, but I think the density of growth has shaded the gardens even during weeks of drought.

I found some areas where favorite plants did not continue to grow. As soon as I chopped out extra plants - like the giant borage bigger than a large plant - previous plants (a fragrant yellow rose) and caladiums (red and white) popped up fast, as if escaping from the Doubting Castle.

I said, "I overdid the Monarch Butterfly Plants." Response - "That's what you wanted." I will probably start the spring erasing most - but not all - of the Monarch plants. My alibi is - "Clearance sales for Monarchs." We saw the caterpillars and the Monarchs flying away.

That was the Monarch annex in front of the patio. The sun-saturated Butterfly Garden is now the sunniest, shoulder-to-shoulder dense area, with Joe Pye, Russian sunflowers, borage, comfrey, Chaste Tree, and bee balm welcoming the furtive honeysuckle rose.