Why don’t my Hollies get berries?

Hollies are dioecious, which means that flowers are borne on separate male and female plants. If there is a compatible male in the area to pollinate your female, they will produce berries.

 

Hollies are species specific when it comes to pollination. They don't cross pollinate with other Holly species outside. For example, a male Ilex opaca (American Holly) is needed to pollinate a female Ilex opaca. Winterberries are early, mid, and late season flowering, and females need the corresponding blooming time male winterberry to produce berries.

 

We sell compatible male hollies for all of our female hollies.

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It's spring. Why are the leaves on my Hollies turning yellow?

Just as deciduous trees shed leaves in the fall, evergreen Hollies shed leaves in the spring. As new growth emerges in April, the inner leaves turn yellow and drop. This is a naturally occurring process and doesn't mean your Holly is dying. Learn more in Sue's blog post, How Hollies Spring Clean.

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When should I prune my Hollies?

There are two windows of opportunity during the year to prune Hollies in the Mid-Atlantic region: 

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December through mid-February, during the winter dormancy. It's not advisable to prune after mid-February, because day length begins to increase and Hollies start to become active, getting ready to shed older leaves before spring's new flush of growth begins. 
 

Mid-July through August, during the summer dormancy. You don't want to prune after August, because Hollies typically undergo a second growth spurt in the fall.

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Is it better to plant larger Hollies or smaller ones?

The larger the transplanted root mass, the longer it takes for a tree to reestablish itself in the ground. When planted in the field, smaller containers planted out next to larger containers surpass the growth rate of the larger plants every time. This is because they have less transplant shock to overcome and can acclimate faster to the landscape.