Holly might not be the first plant that comes to mind when you think of gardening in Nebraska, but there are two varieties that thrive here and offer some of the bright red berries that are a hallmark of the holiday season.
Winterberry Holly (Ilex verticillata)
This holly offers a profusion of bright red berries (technically drupes) from late fall and into the winter that are favored by a variety of birds. There's a catch though: winterberry holly is dioecious (Greek for “two houses”), which means each individual plant bears only one type of flower. The male plants have the flowers with the pollen, and the female plants have the flowers that will turn into the berries. This means you'll need to plant both male and female varieties, and the male must be the same species as the female and bloom at the same time, in order to get the berries (though you should need only one male shrub to pollinate up to three females).
This upright, medium-sized shrub (6-10 feet high) does not have the typical sharp-toothed, evergreen leaves of the "Christmas" holly (the purplish-green foliage will turn black and drop after the first frost), and its tiny flowers are not particularly noteworthy, but its vibrant berries just when we are most craving color make up for its ho-hum aesthetics during the rest of the year.
Winterberry holly will tolerate a variety of soils and poor drainage, but thrives best in acidic, moist to wet soils and in full sun to part shade. Its ability to thrive in wet soil makes it a good choice for areas with poor drainage.
Nebraska Extension Educator Sarah Browning recommends the following winterberry holly cultivars:
‘Red Sprite’ – a dwarf cultivar (3-5 feet tall) that is perfect for smaller landscapes
‘Berry Poppins – a dwarf cultivar (3-4 feet tall) that’s also a good pollinator
‘Berry Nice’ – offers bright red fruit and mildew-resistant leaves
‘Sparkleberry and 'Winter Red' – long-lasting bright red fruit
‘Jim Dandy’ – an early flowering male and a good pollinator choice for ‘Red Sprite’
‘Southern Gentleman – a good male pollinator choice for ‘Red Sprite,’ ‘Sparkleberry’ and ‘Winter Red’
‘Apollo’ – a good male pollinator choice for ‘Sparkleberry’
Meserve Holly (Ilex x meserveae)
This hybrid holly has the "Christmasy" spikey, shiny leaves that one often associates with holly. Meserve holly also offers vibrant red berries, and it too needs both a male and female plant to produce fruit (one male shrub to pollinate every three female shrubs). 'Blue Prince' (male) and 'Blue Princess' (female) are popular cultivars with blue-green foliage.
Meserve holly prefers full sun to part shade and does best when it can get afternoon shade in hot climates. It typically grows 6-8 feet tall, but can reach 15 feet at times, although it’s slow-growing, so it will take several years to reach its full height potential.
The cultivars ‘Blue Girl’ and ‘Blue Princess’ provide the best winter hardiness, and ‘Blue Princess’ is also a prolific berry producer.
The ‘China Boy’ and ‘China Girl’ cultivars have excellent cold hardiness but are also heat tolerant as well.
Looking for other shrubs to add some color into your winter landscape? Read this blog post.
