Hortus Botanicus (Dec 2017)
Lonicera L. genus at the Peter the Great Botanical Garden
Abstract
There are 48 species and forms of honeysuckle genus (Lonicera L.) cultivated at the Peter the Great Botanical Garden of the Komarov Botanical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg, Russia. The majority of them are winter-hardy, bear berries and are highly decorative. Some of the plants are around 150 years of age. The majority of the species are shrubs, six species are climbers, and one (L. praeflorens) – is a single stem small tree. 15 species of the modern collection have been introduced at the first time into the general cultivation. The levels of adaptation change due to the global warming. So, the winter hardiness of some species increases (L. ferdinandii). Other species become more sensitive to diseases and pests within the modern conditions (L. alpigena, L. glehnii). There are taxa which are of interest for the St. Petersburg’s city planting and for a more wide usage outside of the botanic gardens (L. floribunda, L. hispida etc.).
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