Has anyone planted a honeysuckle vine in their yard? How long does it take to spread?

I have a wood privacy fence surrounding my backyard and I would like to plant honeysuckle vines to cover the fence. I just wonder if anyone else has done this and what kind of luck they had with it.

Has anyone planted a honeysuckle vine in their yard? How long does it take to spread?
Yes. Honeysuckle is a good plant to use to cover an 'ugly' fence.



Honeysuckle is REALLY simple to grow (any kind of soil will work - sun or shade - lots of water or little water).



The kind of honeysuckle that you see growing in the woods grows REALLY fast, but will need to be trained to climb the fence or it will just grow along the ground. This honeysuckle is certainly the most fragrant. As for getting new plants started, I would suggest getting several cuttings and put them in a glass or vase with water until you see roots (less than a weeks time) and then plant them then.



However, there is a red/yellow honeysuckle that most lawn centers sell that is less fragrant, slower growing and looses it's leaves in the late, late fall/winter.



Personally, I made the choice of the reddish plant just to be a little different and it can be rooted the same way but you would need to buy the initial plant to get everything started.



I have also tried alternating the two different plants (red, white, red, white, etc) but after about a year, the wild honeysuckle takes over and eventually the reddish variety will not have a chance to grow.



Whatever you choose I'm sure will look great and the flowers will also bring in all kinds of butterflies, hummingbirds, etc.



Good Luck!
Reply:I planted the yellow flowered variety last season, and it's spreading nicely. I trained it to grow up the lattice, and it looks great. If you don't want alot of it, you probably want to go with something else. We live in eastern NC.
Reply:easy to grow

easy to root cuttings

but you want to control it

it can be a bit invasive
Reply:Don't do it!! I put some on my fence and it was so invasive, it pulled the fence down.......a very costly experience!!!
Reply:There are different types of honeysuckle. The native american type, Lonicera sempervirens, is very nice and not invasive. Not fragrant, but attracts hummingbirds, etc. Climbed to the top of my twelve foot tall pergola in two seasons (I'm in zone 5/6), and keeps its leaves (mostly) through the winter. This is a very good plant that climbs by twining around something smallish, like wire or other stems. It won't climb a wooden fence unless you use string or wire to get it started.

The Japanese or Hall's honeysuckle are very invasive, non-native plants that are on a mission to take over the world.

Depending on where you live, there are many other vines that would do the job quickly and be very nice, such as woodbine (aka Virginia Creeper, beautiful red fall foliage) or Dutchman's pipe (quick grower). Maybe a mixture of vines would give you something nice in various seasons. Plants that are native to your region are always a good choice as they are adapted to the environment and easy to care for.
Reply:dig it up right now. my neighbor planted honeysuckle along the fence between our yards and within 3 years it took over their yard and mine. The only way i could get rid of it was to cut it at the base and spray the entire plant with weed killer. It took me about a month to remove all of the plant, including the roots.
Reply:We had a honeysuckle for years and it never got that large however we lived on the east coast. You could plant 2 or 3 one at each end and 1 in the middle and train them to go where you want.
Reply:Yes we do, and it wont take long to spread.