The Holly (Ilex) genus consists of more than 400 species. Hollies offer a diverse range of plant characteristics. They can be deciduous or evergreen and vary from small (18 inches) to very large (over 50 feet). Fall and early winter is the ideal time to plant hollies and other new shrubs in your landscape. Female hollies that produce berries are a great food source for birds and also create nesting habitat to attract birds to your backyard. Hollies also are a good source for fresh greenery to decorate your home for the holidays.
Smaller hollies are attractive as foundation plantings or low hedges. Larger evergreen hollies make attractive, impenetrable tall hedges or screens. In fact, some of the larger holly species can create superior, long-lived screens that are very drought tolerant and have fewer pest and disease problems than Leyland Cypress and other needle-type evergreens. Hollies are also less likely to be damaged by deer than other shrubs.
Most hollies require well-drained soil that is rich in organic matter and slightly acid. All appreciate mulch or pine straw to deter weeds and keep the soil moist and cool. Hollies will grow in sun or part shade, but for the best berry production and most compact growth choose a sunny spot. Some hollies are self-fertilizing, but others are exclusively female and need a male plant nearby for pollination. Check with your nursery grower about whether the hollies you are buying need both male and female plants to set fruit.
American holly (Ilex opaca) is the traditional Christmas holly with large, spiny green leaves and bright red berries. American hollies grow into trees 50’ feet tall. Many cultivars exist. There are also yellow berry cultivars of American holly such as ‘Yellow Berry’, ‘Canary’, and ‘Goldie’.
The Chinese hollies (Ilex cornuta) produces large, spiny leaves that are very glossy and dark green in color. Most Chinese hollies grow quite large, 10’ to 15’ feet. They are one of the few hollies that produce berries without pollination. Some of the more popular varieties in the nursery trade include ‘Burfordii’, ‘Carissa’, ‘Needlepoint’, and ‘Rotunda.’
English holly (Ilex aquifolium) is a large evergreen tree with very spiny, glossy foliage and bright red berries. Cultivars with white variegated leaf margins are very distinctive. English hollies dislike poor drainage. Their growth rate is quite slow compared to other hollies, but can eventually reach 30’ to 50’ feet tall.
Yaupon holly (Ilex vomitoria) is native from New York to central Florida and west to Texas. It grows into a small evergreen tree, 3’ to 15’ feet tall and 3’ to 10’ feet wide. There are also smaller, dwarf cultivars available. Female plants produce small red berries in large clusters. Yaupon Holly tolerates wind and hot climates better than most evergreen hollies.
Inkberry holly (Ilex glabra) is an evergreen shrub, to 10’ feet tall, with thick, spineless leaves and black berries. The dwarf form ‘Compacta’ grows to 4’ feet, but can be sheared to make a 2’ foot hedge. It withstands heavy pruning very well.
Winterberry holly (Ilex verticillata) is a deciduous shrub, which unlike most hollies thrives in boggy soils. Plants grow 6’ to 10’ feet tall and female plants bear enormous crops of bright red berries that last all winter.
‘Nellie R. Stevens’ holly is a hybrid cross between English and Chinese holly. This fast-growing cultivar has excellent dark green foliage and large, red berries and makes an excellent specimen tree. This holly can reach 18’ tall by 18’ wide at maturity. There are many other popular hybrid hollies on the market such Foster’s Hybrid Hollies, Oakland Holly, and Emily Burner Holly. With so many species, hybrids, and cultivars to choose from, there is a holly for practically every landscape situation.
Paul Pugliese is the Extension Coordinator and Agricultural & Natural Resources Agent for Bartow County Cooperative Extension, a partnership of The University of Georgia, The U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Bartow County. For more information and free farm, lawn, or garden publications, call (770) 387-5142 or visit our local website at extension.uga.edu/bartow.
