Easy lifehacks

What does an Ilex tree look like?

What does an Ilex tree look like?

Hollies are grown for their leaves, which are often spiny and glossy, and their colorful berries, which often attract birds. Flowers are small, cup-shaped, and rather inconspicuous and are borne from spring to early summer. Male and female plants are usually needed for fruiting.

What is a tree form holly?

Stevens Holly grows into a conical shaped shrub or tree with dense, dark green leaves. The thickness of this plant makes it an excellent privacy screen or lining for drives/walkways. This variety of holly grows into a tall “tree form” plant with a definite trunk and leaves that do not extend all the way to the ground.

When should holly trees be shaped?

The safest time to prune a holly tree is during its dormant phase, which is late winter to early spring. The tree generally only needs light pruning in order to keep it looking tidy and to maintain its health by removing any congested branches to boost airflow.

Does Ilex need full sun?

The Compact Japanese Holly likes full sun to partial shade. It is tolerant of poor, sandy soil but prefers clay.

Is holly a hardwood or softwood?

Holly timber is a very hard dense fine grained hardwood, and the whitest of all timber species. Its also felled in many gardens in the UK.

Are Hollies poisonous to dogs?

Holly: Varieties include American holly, English holly, Japanese holly, and Christmas holly. Although some are less toxic than others, it is best to keep your dog away from any variety. Eating the leaves can result in vomiting, diarrhea, and gastrointestinal injury due to the plant’s spiny leaves.

How do you shape a holly tree?

Simply prune off new growth or up to ⅓ of the overall plant. Never prune the lower branches shorter than the upper branches. The lower branches won’t have good light penetration and your holly bush will suffer. For size control or invigorating an older overgrown plant, severe pruning can be implemented.

What is the fastest growing holly tree?

The fastest growing holly tree is the Nellie Stevens holly. As mentioned, the Nellie Stevens Holly grows about 3 feet per year.

What kind of leaves do holly ilex trees have?

No thorns or spines like many Holly varieties. Medium to large growing holly with dark green, heavily serrated leaves. New growth is tinged burgundy / purple. Makes a very impressive specimen tree – one of the nicest hollies we have ever grown.

Where does the Ilex verticillata grow in North America?

Ilex verticillata, commonly called winterberry, is a deciduous holly that is native to eastern North America where it typically occurs in swamps, damp thickets, low woods and along ponds and streams.

Where did the name ilex tree come from?

Genus name comes from the Latin name Quercus ilex for holm oak in reference to the foliage similarities (holm oak and many of the shrubs in the genus Ilex have evergreen leaves). Specific epithet from Latin means whorled in reference to the arrangement of sessile fruits in pseudo-whorls around the stems.

What kind of leaves does an Ilex opaca have?

Infloreescence is staminate a cyme, and pistillate single. Its thick, leathery, alternate, simple, deep green leaves (2-4″ long) have spiny marginal teeth. Leaves are alternate, simple, oblong to elliptic, coriaceous, and have an apical spine. Light gray-white and smooth bark, may be splotched or warty.

Author Image
Ruth Doyle