Seven-son flower is a small tree or large shrub in the huneysuckle family (Caprifoliaceae) native to China. It is known for bringing its stellar display of late-season, fragrant, nectar-rich flowers that attract beeds, monarch butterflies and other pollinators. The beautiful fruits and showy bark bring fall and winter interest to the landscape. Buds appear in early summer and are almost forgotten until clusters of seven small flowers cover the entire canopy in fragrant, white petals every September. After the veil of white fades, the flower’s sturdier calyx wraps rounded seeds in vivid colors of cherry red to rose-purple. Winter reveals the beautiful exfoliating bark. Stems as small as ½ inch can have their gray-brown bark peel back to show a lighter, inner surface, most evident in the colder months when the plant is without its deciduous canopy. This plant has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit. This tree can grow 10- to 20-feet tall and half as wide in a fountain-like shrub or single-trunk tree forms, depending on the gardener’s choice and pruning. This moderately fast grower thrives in a range of soils from poor to rich while preferring not to dry out completely. This member of the honeysuckle family is not an aggressive self-propagator. It is easily transplanted from containers. All of these features combine to make this a versatile specimen or complimentary plant with a relatively small footprint for a focus in a somewhat-shaded urban garden or as a standout in a much larger design. Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: No significant problems.
Curated pairwise relationships between this plant and others in the library — who feeds
whom, who competes, who confuses the pests. Green reads as a good pairing, red as one to avoid.
No curated interactions recorded for this species yet.
Also noted by NC State
Related species the NC State Plant Toolbox flags for this plant — look-alikes to tell
apart, and plants that play a similar role in a planting. Ones we carry in the library are linked.
Dappled Sunlight (Shade through upper canopy all day) | Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day) | Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
Soil texture
Clay; High Organic Matter; Loam (Silt); Sand
Soil drainage
Good Drainage | Moist
NC region
Coastal; Mountains; Piedmont
Mature size
Height: 10 ft. 0 in. - 20 ft. 0 in. | Width: 8 ft. 0 in. - 10 ft. 0 in.
Growth rate
Medium
Maintenance
Medium
Canopy layer
2 - Understory (15-40 ft)
Form & Appearance
Habit / form
Erect; Multi-stemmed; Spreading
Texture
Medium
Foliage
Deciduous
Leaf color
Green
Leaf type
Simple
Leaf arrangement
Opposite
Leaf shape
Cordate; Oblong; Ovate
Leaf size
3-6 inches long
Hairs present
No
Leaf detail
nonshowy fall color; leaves persist into November
Flower color
White
Flower value
Fragrant; Showy
Flower form
Panicle
Flower detail
White with pink calyx
Bloom time
Fall; Summer
Fruit color
Purple/Lavender; Red/Burgundy
Fruit type
Drupe
Fruit size
< 1 inch wide
Fruit detail
Small rounded fruit with a cherry red to rose-purple calyx
Bark color
Light Brown; Light Gray
Bark detail
Gray-brown bark exfoliates to show a lighter, inner surface, most evident in the colder months.
Wildlife & Ecology
Native status
Non-native
Origin
China
Wildlife value
Nectar from the flowers is attractive to bees and monarch butterflies.
Attracts
Butterflies; Hummingbirds
Food & Medicine
Fruit type
Drupe
Uses (ethnobotany)
Extracts from the plant possess antibacterial activity.