Honeysuckle (Lonicera) is a perennial evergreen that has smooth stems and leaves. The plant forms its flowers in clusters and can be shades of pink, purple, red, white, or yellow. Honeysuckle also has a sweet nectar. We have used its nectar in beverages, desserts, and other recipes. The taste of the honeysuckle is said to be very sweet with a touch of tartness that gives it just the right flavor. Some people even say that this plant tastes similar to honey.

Honeysuckle is a plant that has long been used in folklore to symbolize serenity. It’s no surprise that the sweet scent of this flower can evoke feelings of peace and relaxation.

If you’ve ever had the pleasure of smelling honeysuckle before, you know how powerful it can be in influencing your mood and overall state of mind.

This article will explore what some cultures believe about honeysuckle and why we should embrace its calming properties in our own time as well.

Where do Honeysuckles Bloom?

Honeysuckle plants bloom in sunny and warm climates where there is lots of water. They can be found in temperate climates in North America, Asia, Australia, and Europe.

Here are some of the most common species of honeysuckle plants:

  • Japanese Honeysuckle (Lonicera japonica) is native to China but has since been introduced to many other countries around the world. Native Americans have used this plant for hundreds of years in traditional medicine.
  • European Honeysuckle (Lonicera periclymenum) is native to Europe, North America, and Western Asia. European settlers brought this species over from the United Kingdom in 1620. For this reason, it can be found in many places around New England today.
  • Swamp Honeysuckle (Decodon verticillatus) is a shrub that blooms in the summer. We can find it along riverbanks and lakesides throughout North America east of the Rocky Mountains.
  • Passionflower (Passiflora incarnata) is native to South America, but has been introduced as an ornamental plant in many other places around the world. It has been used for centuries as a natural sedative and can be found growing throughout North America today, especially along the East Coast of the United States.

Fun fact: the Japanese Honeysuckle is by far the most common one. The plant is invasive and requires careful pruning if you don’t want it to proliferate and take over your yard.

The History of Honeysuckle

Honeysuckle is a perennial plant native to Asia and Europe. It has been used for centuries as a natural sedative and can be found growing throughout North America today.

This is one of the most common plant species in temperate climates in North America, Asia, Australia, and Europe. The flowers of this plant are formed in clusters and they come in shades of pink, purple, red, white, or yellow. Honeysuckle also has a sweet nectar that has been used for beverages, desserts, and other recipes.

The meaning of honeysuckle has changed with time according to the culture that is using it. Sometimes people refer to honeysuckle as a symbol of serenity according to folklore.

People have used honeysuckle for hundreds of years to treat insomnia and anxiety. It has also been used by Native Americans to help with earaches, toothaches, colds, coughs, stomach aches, or even fever.


The Meaning of Honeysuckles

Honeysuckle flowers have been used in medicine and beverages for hundreds of years. The Native Americans were the first to discover how powerful this plant could be for treating various conditions such as fever, dehydration, and even stomach ulcers.

In addition, many cultures believe honeysuckles can help with insomnia and sleep disorders by promoting relaxation and a calming effect on the mind.

Honeysuckles have also been said to help with respiratory conditions such as asthma, bronchitis, coughs, and colds. We believe them to be effective in helping treat these disorders because of their antibacterial properties found within the nectar of honeysuckle flowers.

Beyond their use, honeysuckles have a variety of symbolic meanings.

Honeysuckles Symbolize Happiness

We often associate honeysuckles with happiness and joy. If you have ever seen a honeysuckle growing in your backyard, it is common to feel happy whenever you view this beautiful flower because of the way they brighten up any space.

This plant symbolizes how, when we find peace within ourselves, it will fill our homes with love and happiness.

Honeysuckles Symbolize Love and Passion

The nectar of honeysuckle flowers is a symbol of love found in many cultures around the world. We have used this sweet liquid as an aphrodisiac for hundreds of years because it causes feelings of passion, excitement, and euphoria when consumed by those who experience its benefits.

Honeysuckles symbolize unrequited love because many cultures believed it that if you smell the flowers but don’t taste its nectar, your loved one will never return your feelings for them. If honeysuckle flowers are given as a gift to another person, we often see this as an act of submission and devotion.

Honeysuckles Symbolize Protection and Fidelity

Honeysuckles are also believed to symbolize protection. Many cultures believe that when you see a honeysuckle plant, it is your duty to protect its flowers from being plucked or damaged. Honeysuckles also represent faithfulness and monogamy because if a person is true to their partner, they will never want or desire another.

Honeysuckles Symbolize Virginity and Purity

In some cultures, such as the Celts in ancient times, honeysuckle was a symbol of virginity and purity. This belief stems from an old folktale that claims when a young girl was raped. Her innocence would flow out of her body and transform into honeysuckle.

Honeysuckles also represent fertility because the nectar found within its flowers can help treat female infertility issues that are caused by hormonal imbalances in women during their menstrual cycles. This plant is believed to bring balance back into a woman’s body a conceive a child.

Honeysuckles Symbolize New Beginnings

In addition, we often use honeysuckle flowers as decorations for weddings because they symbolize new beginnings in life. Many cultures believe that when someone begins a marriage or any type of partnership with another person, it is common to break off them to help her find her way back to you.

Honeysuckles are also often used as a sign of good luck because if someone can smell the flower, they will have success in their future endeavors and ventures. If we find the nectar within these flowers without being plucked or damaged, it means that an individual has gained wealth and riches from their recent endeavors.

How to Grow Honeysuckle

It should be easy to find honeysuckle at your local garden center or flower shop. When you decide on a specific honeysuckle to purchase, make sure it is self-pollinating because they are usually sold as separate individual plants.

It is also important that you plant the honeysuckle in an area with plenty of sunlight and water it often during warm and dry periods. Use fertilizer once every other week, to promote growth and blooming.

You will need around 2 feet of space between each stem for this plant to grow properly. You should also keep the soil moist at all times by watering it as needed, with the water being at least one inch deep.

Honeysuckle plants spread quickly and can cover a large area within a short time, so it’s best that you keep them trimmed as often as possible in order to control their growth.

Editor’s note: If you don’t have the space or patience to grow honeysuckle yourself, you can easily buy it online from flower retailers like Wilson Bros Gardens.

You will be repaid with their lovely appearance and scent.

The Appearance of Honeysuckle Flowers

Honeysuckle flowers are bell-shaped and come in a variety of colors such as white, pink, purple, yellow or red. Each bloom is around one inch long and they usually grow between four and six inches wide depending on the type of honeysuckle plant it is.

The Scent of Honeysuckle

Honeysuckle nectar is abundant in various chemicals that can affect one’s state of mind when smelled. For this reason, it should come as no surprise that some cultures have used the nectar in honeysuckles to make intoxicating beverages, syrups, and cordials.

These days, you can find natural honeysuckle extracts sold in most health food stores for use as sedatives or sleep aids. Honeysuckle flowers have also been infused into massage oils that are said to help with stress relief because of the plant’s calming properties.

What Can You Make with Honeysuckle?

Besides nectar, honeysuckle flowers can be used in various ways. For example, you could make a honeysuckle flavored tea by boiling the flower heads before steeping them for around fifteen minutes to an hour in hot water with some honey or sugar added afterwards. However, it should only be consumed once every day because too much of this tea can cause insomnia or other health problems.

Honeysuckle flowers are also used in various perfumes and lotions because of their strong fragrance that helps people relax, reduce anxiety levels, and relieve stress. When the flower heads are dried out, they produce an aromatic dust called “lotion salt” which has a sweet scent like brown sugar.

Honeysuckle flowers can also be used in various jams, jellies or syrups that are often added to desserts such as ice cream, pancakes, yogurt and other sweet dishes. They can even be dehydrated into a powder for use with meat marinades because the nectar inside of these flowers helps tenderize the meat.

Honeysuckle symbolism is abundant in various cultures because it has been used for centuries to make perfumes, jams, jellies and other types of cooking ingredients that are said to have health benefits when consumed or applied topically to the skin. There are even superstitions surrounding this flower which claim if you break a honeysuckle flower off of a plant, it will bring you bad luck or hurt the person who did the breaking.


Honeysuckle flowers have been an important part of many cultures over the centuries. The flower’s beauty and scent have inspired people and helped them get through dark times.

It is no surprise then to see so many applications of the flower in cooking or other areas of life. There are many options to choose from for honeysuckle and its uses, so you can find one that fits your needs perfectly.

You can easily buy honeysuckle anywhere. Every flower seller should have some, both online and in person. The plant is quite common in North America. In fact, the Japanese variation is considered an invasive species. You’ll recognize it when you see a house wrapped in honeysuckle vines.

Also Read: Petals of a Dogwood Flower: The Meaning Behind the Symbol

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