Black-berried honeysuckle

About

Black-berried honeysuckle is an upright shrub 1–1.5 m tall, occasionally reaching two meters. The leaves are opposite, elliptical, entire, soft, dark green on top, and bluish below. Young shoots are bare, while older branches are covered with gray bark that peels off in strips.

It blooms in May—June. The flowers are small, bilabiate, whitish-pink, and grow in pairs on a common long thin stem that emerges from the leaf axil. Similarly, the berries ripen in pairs: two round blue-black berries with a bluish bloom, fused at the base. They ripen in July—August.

This is a true mountain species. In the Carpathians, black-berried honeysuckle grows in beech, fir, and spruce forests, at forest edges, along streams, and forest roads, most often at an altitude of 600–1600 m. In the Ukrainian Carpathians, naturalists frequently record it.

The berries of black-berried honeysuckle are inedible. They are bitter and can cause vomiting and digestive upset, so guides advise considering them poisonous. The danger is that they ripen during the blueberry season and are similar in color to blueberries.

They are easy to distinguish. Blueberries are low shrubs up to half a meter with small serrated leaves; the berries grow singly and have a round "crown" on top, with dark purple juice. Honeysuckle is a tall shrub, and the berries grow in pairs on a long stem, without a "crown."

Where in the Carpathians

Orange — where naturalists recorded the species (GBIF, CC0/CC BY); a blank area does not mean it is absent.

Countries

Ukraine · Slovakia · Czechia · Poland · Romania

Mountain ranges

In other countries: 🇸🇰 High Tatras, 🇸🇰 Slovak Ore Mountains, 🇸🇰 Belianske Tatras, 🇸🇰 Greater Fatra, 🇸🇰 Western Tatras, 🇸🇰 Low Tatras, 🇸🇰 Lesser Fatra, 🇸🇰 Volovec Mountains, 🇸🇰 Slovak Paradise, 🇨🇿 Moravian-Silesian Beskids, 🇸🇰 Strážov Mountains, 🇸🇰 Levoča Mountains, 🇸🇰 Slovak Central Mountains, 🇵🇱 Pieniny

Altitude belts

Foothills (below 600 m) · Beech forests (600–1200 m) · Conifer forests (1200–1600 m)

When to see it

From naturalists’ observations in the Carpathians (iNaturalist, research grade): the darker the cell, the more often the species is seen that month.

Safety

Berries are inedible and can cause vomiting and digestive upset. Do not confuse with blueberries: in honeysuckle, the berries are paired, on a long stem, on a tall shrub. In case of suspected poisoning, call 103 (or 112).

Look-alikes — how to tell them apart

Protection and rules

Not listed in the Red Book of Ukraine.

FAQ