This is real spring, not the beautiful fake of West 28th Street. Heading down to Chinatown early this evening, I suddenly thought: this is the honeysuckle spot. And it was. And it was in bloom. And I stepped into a light cloud of scent. Blooming in the M'finda Kalunga community garden on the Lower East Side, between Christy and Forsyth Streets. I was on the sidewalk, it behind the iron fence. Not a pretty shrub. But spectacular in its perfume. There's a reason for "issima"...which is light, fresh, lemony, sweet.
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Lonicera fragrantissima
This is real spring, not the beautiful fake of West 28th Street. Heading down to Chinatown early this evening, I suddenly thought: this is the honeysuckle spot. And it was. And it was in bloom. And I stepped into a light cloud of scent. Blooming in the M'finda Kalunga community garden on the Lower East Side, between Christy and Forsyth Streets. I was on the sidewalk, it behind the iron fence. Not a pretty shrub. But spectacular in its perfume. There's a reason for "issima"...which is light, fresh, lemony, sweet.
Sweet Breath of Spring so its called. It rung a bell:
ReplyDeletehttp://nycgarden.blogspot.com/2008/03/its-spring-in-dc.html
Honeysuckle already?! One of my most favorite scents in the summer on a beautiful evening, when you catch it unexpectedly. Memories of Lancaster County driving through back roads on summer nights, windows open, music blasting.
ReplyDeleteFrank - Huh! I did not know that. The invasive part or it's name...pretty name.
ReplyDeleteMs Hound - different honeysuckle. Same genus different species. Yes, that's a favourite scent of mine too. Your description sounds amazing.
I have complicated feelings about invasive aliens and the like. Very complicated.
ReplyDeleteSweet Breath indeed.
Is it a crime to poo poo non-natives and so on and enjoy the breath of those planted by others?
I love honeysuckle, too, which grows abundantly here in California.
ReplyDeleteI, too, have very complicated feelings about "non-natives" ... Where in time is the cutoff point for considering something native to a place?
Keli'i
Well, can you imagine the uproar if the alien invader nomenclature were applied ti people?? Indigenous peoples only? A lot of us would be displaced.
ReplyDeleteTechnically, I am an Alien. Says so on my papers. So far, though, I have not proved invasive.
I'm on the fence. It's a wobbly fence. A lot depends on how the plant reproduces and spreads. Maybe a pot can contain if, if it spreads though suckering. But if the seeds and fruit are carried by wind and animals...more of a problem. I am not a purist, though. So much joy can be lost through it. But, like vegetarianism, I see the point.
But the flesh is weak.
I'm constantly fighting with honeysuckle, generously brought in large quantity by the birds (who also spread poison ivy). I try to keep it from strangling my shrubs and flower beds, but it still runs rampant in my "jungle" (wild blackberry bramble) so i get to enjoy its scent while fighting with it elsewhere.
ReplyDeleteMarie, you got the botanical name absolutely right. The common name is winter honeysuckle, because this shrub (not vine) blooms in winter, starting some years in February if its mild. I've never seen this species spread around or show invasive tendencies, but I can't vouch for other cities or places. It is robust and well-mannered in NYC.
ReplyDeleteThe famous invasive honeysuckle around here is Japanese honeysuckle, Lonicera japonica, a vine that does spread quickly by seed and can strangle young saplings in forested areas. This plant blooms in early summer, and typically has white and buff-yellow blossoms. It has pure, strong honeysuckle scent, while winter honeysuckle smells more like lemon to me. Astonishing in the middle of winter.
Thank you, Anonymous - yes, I also think it smells a little lemony. I know how invasive the vine L. japonica is...still have done no research on the shrub. I think when people hear "honeysuckle" the immediate association is with that sweet, bad vine...
ReplyDelete