Michael Charters, www.calflora.net
Family
Caprifoliaceae
Botanical Name
Lonicera sempervirens 'Magnifica'
Plant Common Name
Magnifica Trumpet Honeysuckle, Trumpet Honeysuckle
General Description
Magnificent lipstick bright orange red flowers and wide adaptability make this small deciduous to evergreen vine a focal point during its long summer bloom season. The species is native to the central eastern United States and southern Canada where it grows in a wide variety of soils and exposures, a clue to the adaptability of ‘Magnifica.’ The leaves of this cultivar emerge purple-red in the spring, then change to blue-green for the rest of the season. Where winters are mild this plant may become evergreen or nearly so. It roduces vigorous, tan-colored shoots with widely spaced leaves that twine upwards readily on fences, arbors, and shrubs and trees.
Known for its generous bloom, ‘Magnifica’ has clusters of flowers on every shoot. It blooms most heavily at the end of spring, but will continue to produce flowers here and there through the rest of the growing season. The flowers are followed by bright red berries, which are attractive in late summer and fall. Hummingbirds find the flowers irresistible and song birds relish the berries, making ‘Magnifica’ a first-class habitat plant. This vigorous vine tolerates a wide range of soils and light-levels. With pruning to retain the old stems, it will maintain a short stature and grow as a shrub, a useful trait when grown in beds, borders and foundation plantings. Allowing new stems to go unpruned, transform the plant into a twining vine
Characteristics
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AHS Heat Zone
6 - 1
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USDA Hardiness Zone
4 - 7
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Plant Type
Vine/Liana
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Sun Exposure
Full Sun, Partial Sun
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Height
4'-7' / 1.2m - 2.1m
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Width
1'-6' / 0.3m - 1.8m
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Bloom Time
Late Spring, Early Summer, Summer, Late Summer, Early Fall, Fall, Late Fall
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Native To
Northeastern United States, Mid-Atlantic United States, Southeastern United States, North-Central United States, Central United States, South-Central United States, Canada
