Japanese Honeysuckle

Lonicera japonica, the Japanese honeysuckle or golden-and-silver honeysuckle, is a honeysuckle native to East Asia, including much of China. It is a twining vine that climbs 10 metres or more into trees, with opposite oval leaves, hollow older stems, and sweetly vanilla-scented double-tongued flowers that open white and fade to yellow. The fruit is a black berry 3 to 4 millimetres across. It is often grown as an ornamental but has become an invasive species in many countries, and is a noxious weed in 46 US states. The nectar of the flowers feeds deer, rabbits and hummingbirds. In traditional Chinese medicine it is called rěn dōng téng, winter-enduring vine, or jīn yín huā, gold-silver flower, after flowers of different ages on one plant. Its leaves contain methyl caffeate, luteolin and chlorogenic acid derivatives.