A Diversity of Hollies - Arnoldia

8proved hardy on Martha’s Vineyard. Ihave a few plants and did raise someothers for a short period, but the speciesis, regrettably, out of range in my area.Ilex ciliospinosaA small tree-form holly, Ilex ciliospinosaLoesener grows to twenty feet (6 m). Ithas rather dull, leathery leaves that arenarrow and serrated. It is entirely hardyand grows more compact in full sun. Ifgrown in shade, it becomes thin and ungainly,although it will respond to pruning.In my experience, the berries,though bright red, are too few and toosmelly to compete for display with manyother species.Ilex glabraThe shining inkberry, Ilex glabra (Linnaeus)Asa Gray, is the other evergreen hollynative to Martha’s Vineyard. It is widespreadthroughout the East Coast of theUnited States, growing naturally in moistwoods but developing best and fruitingmore heavily in sun. For the most part mysoils are too dry, but there are some handsomeplants to be seen in sunshine. Theleaves of Ilex glabra are spineless, narrow,and two inches (5 cm) long. Sincecoming on the market, the dwarf form’Compacta’ has become a commonlyused, dependable plant for public areas.It can be sheared to advantage, to makebarrier hedgesor thickets. There arenearly white-berried forms. Unsheared(by hand or by the wind), it can reach tenfeet (3 m) and is slowly stoloniferous. Inkberryis a handsome and desirable native,adaptable and easy to maintain.Deciduous SpeciesFruit and Leaves of Ilex ciliospinosa Loesener, acompact, evergreen shrub or small tree that attainssome twenty feet (6 m) in height.The more I have worked with hollies themore I have come to appreciate thecharming species, hybrids, and numerouscultivars that drop their leaves in winter.The protracted fall weather that lastedwell into January of 1985 was the perfectclimate for them. They made a brilliant,graceful, and natural-looking show informal settings around public buildings,on sloping hillsides, and in island groupingsalong garden paths. The differentshades of orange-reds and saturated

9deep reds, when mixed, set each otheroff, adding sparkle to the whole.There are six deciduous speciesof holly in my garden. Birds love them.One autumn evening five robins sogorged themselves with the fermentingfruit of Ilex verticillata that their eyesseemed to bulge, and they could barelymove. The same autumn, a nurserymantold me that his shrubs were so heavywith berries that he had to tie the fruitingbranches together to prevent them frombreaking.’Sparkleberry’, a cultivar developedat the National Arboretum and registeredin 1972, typifies the group. It is ahybrid of Ilex serrata Thunberg and Ilexverticillata Linnxus (Asa Gray), ’Apollo’being the male of the same cross. Forcedto restrict myself to a single pair of deciduoushollies, I would choose this pair.Ilex ambiguavar. montanaIlex ambigua (Michaux) Torrey var. montana(Torrey and Gray), or Ilex montana,as it used to be called, is a slender treewith long, thin, pale-green leaves. Growingon an exposed mountainside, it canappear dense and distinguished. Myseed came from such a location. But inthe shelter of my lowland garden the treeis thin and angular. Since I have only oneblooming male and one immature seedling,I am loath to evaluate the species.This eastern holly, whose taxonomy isstill unstable, may well have developeddifferent habits as ways of adapting to thediverse environments in its range.flex amelanchierKnown in the South as the swamp holly,The Deciduous Hollies Ilex serrata (top) and Ilexverticillata, the Parents of Cultivars ’Sparkleberry’(female) and ’Apollo’ (male). These two culuvarswere developed at the National Arboretum, Washington,D.C. Photograph from the Archives of the ArnoldArboretum.Ilex amelanchier M. A. Curtis is not veryhardy in Martha’s Vineyard’s portion ofZone 6.1 have been particularly attractedto its long-peduncled, red velvet berriesthat are very beautiful for a wildling. Myseeds came from the Henry Foundationin 1970. So far, my seven plants have notflowered in the shady spot I picked forthem. They grow at the edge of woods,

10where it is dry, and only with morningsun. Regrettably, I cannot offer them theirpreference of a swamp at Barnard’s InnFarm.Ilex deciduaThe species Ilex decidua Walter, commonlyknown as possum haw, is a fineholly now and has an increasingly promisingfuture as more and more new cultivarsare introduced. My first plant trialswere from Alabama seed kindly suppliedby Mr. Tom Dodd. Most of them germinated,but they had a long, downhill historyof growth in summer and dieback inwinter. Sadly, they were eliminated, butnot until Ihad obtained hardier clonesfrom Mr. Bon Hartline of Anna, Illinois.These Midwestern cultivars, which areslowly maturing in our garden, are ’CouncilFire’, ’Pocahontas’, ’Sundance’, and’Warren’s Red’. I have seen their fruits asgrown in Illinois, and one could want nothingfiner. I found that they could be pollinatedby males of Ilex opaca, whichbloom at the same time. The fruits of Ilexdecidua last well into the winter, offeringfood to wildlife after most other holly berrieshave been taken.conclude that it was a female; last year,however, it had an abundance of maleflowers. This interesting plant is actuallyquite similar to Ilex verticillata and growsin the same habitats in which it does,though I have failed to find it growing wildon Martha’s Vineyard. Ilex laevigata hashad an evolutionary history similar to thatof Ilex verticillata but, Dr. Shiu-ying Huof the Arnold Arboretum assures me,does not hybridize with it.Ilex laevigataThe smooth winterberry, as Ilex laevigata(Pursh) Asa Gray is called, is native fromMaine to Georgia and is entirely hardywith me. I have never yet found the secretof germinating its seeds, although Ihave tried various methods over manyyears. One plant was given to me by Mr.Hal Bruce of Delaware. The first year itproduced a single berry, which made meFruiting Branch of Ilex laevigata (Pursh) Asa Gray,the Smooth Winterberry. Photographed in 1902 byAlfred Rehder. From the Archives of the ArnoldArboretum.

1 1Ilex serrataTo my eye, the Japanese winterberry,Ilex serrata Thunberg, is a special treasure.The horizontal branches are characteristicof its mature form. In a class withAcer palmatum when it comes to gracefulgrowth habit, it may be even better knownfor the great abundance of rather small,red, clustered fruits, which last for manyweeks in the garden. A grouping of threeor four females with a male makes a lovelyisland of sparkle in a semishaded corner.The bushes are five to six feet ( 1.5 to2 m) tall and rather open, the better to displaytheir natural form.Ilex verticillataBlack alder, as the native species Ilexverticillata (Linnxus/ Asa Gray is calledon Martha’s Vineyard, or winterberry, isthe easiest to cultivate and the mostreadily available deciduous species. It isstoloniferous in wet or dry soils, fastgrowing, tough, and showy. Perhaps thefinest display of winterberry on the Vineyardgrows on the verges of Mill Stream,in West Tisbury. A single clone has graduallyspread by hundreds of stolons tomake a solid dome a good twenty feet (6m) in diameter. At the peak of its berrycolor, after the leaves have fallen in November,it rivals a bonfire for brilliance.By comparison with native NewJersey seedlings, the Vineyard strain ofIlex verticillata is a "good doer." I havenamed five clones of it: ’Bright Horizon’,’Earlibright’, and three others with localIndian names-’Quitsa’ (a place-name);’Tiasquam’ (the name of the island’s onlyriver); and ’Quansoo’ (the name of a swimmingbeach, our favorite), a male plantthat grew spontaneously on the edge ofour woods. They differ in details but notin quality or dependability. The name’Bright Horizon’ reflects the impact thatour many stands of winterberry dottedalong the gentle hills of Martha’s Vineyard,seen against the sky, have on theviewer. The fruits of ’Earlibright’ are lighterand more orange-red than those of’Bright Horizon’.In addition to these cultivars, Iam raising cultivars of Ilex verticillata developedby others: ’After Glow’, ’AutumnGlow’, ’Harvest Red’, ’Maryland Beauty’,and ’Winter Red’. In addition, there arethe cultivars ’Raritan Red’, a male, and’Red Sprite’, a dwarf. Until they reachmaturity I can only admire them all forthe differing shades of red and orange oftheir fruits-their lavish gifts of autumnand winter display-and eagerly wait forthem to mature.There are yellow-berried forms,white-berried forms, and variegated-leafforms of Ilex verticillata, in addition tothese green-leaved forms with red fruits.The search for special wild forms of Ilexas has theverticillata has barely begun,breeding of new and better hybrids.The female clones were allselected from seedlings raised from thefruit of a single wild plant still growing ina nearby field. I collected the seeds in1958, stratified them for a year byhanging them in a barn, in a plastic bagof damp sphagnum moss. They germinatedin 1960, and in 1961 I spaced twentyof them out in my nursery. The firstfemales to bloom were planted out in1963. Since Ilex verticillata is a highlystoloniferous species, those that wereplanted too close together are indistinguishablefrom each other when they arenot in fruit. They form a solid hedge that

12is as care-free as any I know. Their onlypest is a leaf tier that blackens andshrivels the leaves on the tips of thebranchlets. Fortunately, the leaf tier doesnot detract from the berry display afterthe leaves have fallen.Some Successful HybridsOf the thirty or more named hybrids I amtesting, I will name a few that haveadapted well to the conditions onMartha’s Vineyard. They have alreadysurvived two or three winters in the field.For elegance and superior qualityof foliage I would name a group of fivesiblings resulting from the cross of Ilexcornuta ’Burfordii #10’ by Ilex latifoliaThunberg. Neither parent is hardy inZone 6, but the foliage of the cross is sohandsome that I am trying to keep myplants growing. Wind shelter is important.’Amy Joel’ and ’Mary Nell’ are femaleclones. Another clone came from Mr.Bon Hartline by way of the late Dr.Joseph McDaniel; I believe there are twoothers. Dr. McDaniel made the cross inMr. Tom Dodd’s Nursery in Alabama.’Clusterberry’ is a three-waycross of llex aquifolium by Ilex cornutaby Ilex leucoolada (Maximowicz) Makino.A female from the National Arboretum,it is still only two feet by three feet(0.6 m by 0.9 m). It is showing itself to bea first-rate cultivar. ’September Gem’(Ilex ciliospinosa X Ilex XaquipernyiGable ex W. Clarke) is another good femalefrom the National Arboretum.’Lydia Morris’ (Ilex cornuta ’Burfordii’X Ilex pernyi Franchet) wasregistered by the late Dr. Henry T. Skinnerin 1961. An early success, it has ledthe field of hybridizers. There is a ’JohnMorris’ pollinator.’Shin Nien’ (Ilex opaca X Ilexcornuta) is a fine male registered by Dr.Joseph McDaniel of Urbana, Illinois.There is even a four-way hybrid,produced by Dr. Elwyn Orton of RutgersUniversity, called ’Rock Garden’ (IlexXaquipernyi X [Ilex integra X Ilex pernyi]).It has the elegance of a tight dwarf,with stylish foliage, and is a top-quality ornamental.The blue hollies (hybrids of IlexXmeserveae/ are achieving wide and deservedpopularity. I lost the cultivar ’BlueBoy’ to cold but have four others-’BluePrincess’, ’Blue Girl’, ’Blue Prince’, and’Blue Stallion’-all of them hardy, handsome,and desirable.Many variegated plants of differinggenetic background have grown poorlyin my conditions, but I do have twoplants of ’Sunny Foster’ (Ilex cassine LinnxusX Ilex opaca or Ilex cassine X IlexXattenuata Ashe). The more sun it getsthe more gold there is in its leaves; themore shade, the more growth it makes.Ilex cassine is, of course, tender on Martha’sVineyard, but the hybrid is most attractive.I hope it survives and adapts.There is a three-way chancehybrid that I have registered as ’Pernella’(presumably [Ilex cornuta X Ilex pernyi] XIlex aquifolium). The plant has large,spherical red berries, enormous vigorand health, with a strong central leaderand a good rate of growth. J. FranklinStyer Nursery is propagating it.Exploring the Great Diversity of HolliesReaders intrigued by the growing diversitywithin the genus Ilex may wish to jointhe Holly Society of America (304 North

13Wind Road, Baltimore, Maryland 21204).Through the Society, its publications andconventions, they will learn much abouthollies and will be able to join in the activitiesof its members.In Belgium, there is a new arboretum,Domein Bokrijk, where as large acollection of hollies as possible is beingamassed. There is another, in Korea,whose name, Chollipo, means holly. Itsowner, Mr. Carl Ferris Miller, is alreadyresponsible for some choice introductions.If one needed still newer holliesto augment the diverse species now incultivation, he could turn explorer. Hemight begin with eastern South America-Brazil-thecenter of distribution ofIlex, then proceed to the islands of Polynesia,to Taiwan, China, the Canary Islands,or even the wooded coastal zonesof the eastern United States. In theseplaces and many more there are hollieswaiting to be found, propagated, named,distributed, and enjoyed.Select BibliographyW. Dallimore. Holly, Yew, and Box. London andNew York: John Lane, 1908. xiv +284 pages.G. K. Eisenbeiss. Bibliography of introduced Ilex speciesand their infraspecific ranks.Holly Society Joumal, Volume 2,Number 2, pages 1 to 7 (1984).. Some holly ~Ilex) in cultivation. ArboriculturalJournal, Volume 7, Number3, pages 201 to 210 (1983).. and T. R. Dudley. International Checklistof Cultivated Ilex, Part 1.Ilex opaca. National ArboretumContribution No. 3. Washington,D. C.: Agricultural Research Service,United States Department ofAgriculture, 1973. 85 pages.D. E. Hansell, T. R. Dudley, and G. K. Eisenbeiss,editors. Handbook of Hollies : ASpecial Issue on Ilex. AmericanHorticultural Magazine, Volume49, Number 4, pages 150 to 331(1970).Shiu-ying Hu. Letter of 2 November 1978 in: T. R.Dudley, A Martha’s Vineyardmystery solved. Holly Society ofAmerica. Proceedings of the 55thMeeting, pages 26 to 27 (1978?).Page 27.H. Harold Hume. Hollies. New York: The MacmillanCompany, 1953. xi + 242 pages.Polly Hill (Mrs. Julian W. Hill) resides in Delawareduring the winter and on Martha’s Vineyard,Massachusetts, during the summer, where shemaintains a renowned collection of hollies.