Honeysuckle Pest Problems

Honeysuckle's fragrance attracts butterflies into the garden.

Honeysuckle is an old-fashioned garden plant. It can be grown as a hedge or shrub but is most commonly grown as a vine. Luckily, honeysuckle is a tough plant and the pests that are attracted to it are easy to manage.

Types

Greedy scale, potato aphid and caterpillars are the most common pests found on honeysuckle plants. While greedy scale won't harm the honeysuckle, it is unattractive. Aphids suck the juices out of the leaves and leave behind a sticky residue that will host various types of fungus. Caterpillars have voracious appetites and can defoliate your honeysuckle.

Identification

Aphids are tiny green, brown, red, black or white insects, generally found in clusters on the honeysuckle's foliage. Greedy scale, an armored scale, doesn't really look like a bug, but will appear as a white, brown or red bump on the foliage. Caterpillars, worm-like insects, readily feed on honeysuckle foliage, leaving holes and even skeletonizing the leaves.

Prevention/Solution

Proper watering and fertilization goes a long way toward discouraging insect infestations. Aphids can generally be washed off the honeysuckle with a strong blast from a hose. Insecticidal soap or horticultural oils will also control them and the greedy scale as well. Caterpillar control consists of cutting away the infested leaves and removing the eggs from the branches.

References

• University of California: Honeysuckle, California Honeysuckle--Lonicera spp.
• University of California: Aphids
• University of California: Scales
• University of California: Foliage-Feeding Caterpillars