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American Holly

Ilex opaca

American holly is the classic evergreen holly, with spiny leaves and bright red winter berries borne only on female trees, so a male has to stand within range for fruit to set. It is slow but very long-lived, and its dense evergreen structure makes it one of the best cover and nesting shrubs a songbird can have in winter. Birds leave the fruit until late in the season, after repeated freezing has broken down its bitterness, which is why the display lasts into February. The roasted leaves were a popular caffeine-free tea substitute during the Civil War. The berries are poisonous to people: like others in the genus they carry saponins and can cause vomiting, diarrhea and stupor if eaten in quantity — worth knowing, since cut holly comes indoors at exactly the season the fruit is ripe.

Family

Aquifoliaceae

Type

tree

Lifespan

perennial

Height

15–30 ft

Spacing

10–20 ft apart

Light

sun, part shade, shade

Soil moisture

dry, wet

Soil pH

acidic, neutral

Bloom

March, April, May, June

Bloom colors

white, green

Wildlife value

songbirds, butterflies, larval host

Caterpillar hosts

~39 butterfly & moth species

Landscape uses

hedge or screen, rain garden

Native states

AL, AR, CT, DC, DE, FL, GA, IN, KY, LA, MA, MD, MO, MS, NC, NJ, NY, OH, OK, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, WV