A popular and versatile addition to the landscape, holly (Ilex spp.) grows in many forms, including deciduous, evergreen, tree and shrub forms. There are over 300 known varieties of holly throughout the world, but not all are grown in the United States. Chinese holly and Yaupon holly are two species offering dwarf or compact shrubs with ivy-like leaves and red berries, somewhat like Christmas holly.
The Ilex genus was present in America when the first colonists arrived. The shrub was known to Native American people, who preserved the red berries and made them into decorative buttons. The buttons were so popular with many tribes that they were used for bartering. Wood from holly bushes is used to make canes, furniture and decorative scroll work. Holly wood was also stained black and substituted for ebony on some types of inlay work.
Berry Production Requirements
Most holly species are dioeious plants -- meaning they are either male or female, and each sex produces their own flowers. Only female plants produce berries, so bees are necessary to carry pollen from male flowers back to female flowers. As long as there are male plants within a 1 1/2 to 2 mile radius, pollination will occur. However, some species and cultivars are self-pollinating. Not all Ilex species are considered shrubs, and likewise, not all that are shrubs produce red berries. Those that do range in size from compact or dwarf to very large. Evergreen hollies are found in more temperate climates, typically in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 7 to 11. Evergreen varieties add festive winter color at a time when, there may not be abundant color in the landscape.
Chinese Holly Cultivars
"Burfordii" or Burford holly is a dense shrub with dark leathery green leaves and an abundance of bright red berries. It grows to a height of 12 to 20 feet and spreads to a width of between eight and 10 feet. "Burfordii Nana," a dwarf Burford holly cultivar is a dense, compact dwarf shrub. With glossy green leaves and red berries, it grows to a height of 5 to 8 feet and spreads equally wide. "Rotunda" is a dense and compact dwarf Chinese hollly. It has dark green leaves that are covered with spines and produces large amounts of red berries. "Rotunda" grows 3 to 5 feet tall and wide.
"Nana," a dwarf Yaupon holly, is a small shrub with a dense texture. It has small dark green rounded leaves displaying a yellowish tinge when they emerge, and produces scarlet-colored berries. "Nana" bushes grow 3 to 5 feet tall and spread to between 3 and 6 feet wide. "Taylor's Rudolph" dwarf Yaupon is a very small shrub, only growing 3 to 4 feet tall. Its spread extends a foot more than its height, creating a very dense look with its fine-textured foliage. Leaves are small, and upon emergence, are tinged with purple, maturing to bright green. This compact Yaupon holly also produces red berries.
- University of Florida IFAS Extension: Holly: Ilex Species
- University of Florida IFAS Extension: Holly at a Glance
- University of Florida IFAS Extension: Ilex Opaca: American Holly
- University of Wisconsin at La Crosse: English Holly
- Fairfax County Public Schools: American Holly: Ilex Opaca
- Clemson Cooperative Extension: Holly
- U.S. Department of Agriculture Home and Garden Bulletin 130: Growing Hollies
- Colorado State University: For the Love of Holly
- University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension: Deck Your Halls With Homegrown Holly
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