Red Winter Berries by Design

 

Ilex decidua

Recently I came across a spectacular group of small trees with red berries in a business park. At first I thought it was a popular cultivar of hawthorn but when I stopped to look, I realized it was deciduous holly (Ilex decidua). I love finding native plants being used in professional landscape design.

Ilex decidua plants with a hedge of Ilex cornuta behind

That brings to four the number of red-berried native plants that I’ve seen used in plant designs. They include both deciduous and evergreen plants. Since this post focuses on designed landscapes, I’m providing links to known cultivars of these hollies, especially so that you can get reliable male and female plants. When it comes to hollies, generally plan for using both male and female plants in a group so that you can get berries on the females (although Ilex x attenuata ‘Fosteri’ is considered self-fertile). There may be newer cultivars not included in these lists.

Probably the most-widely used is the group of evergreen hybrid hollies developed from two native species. The Ilex x attenuata hybrids (Ilex opaca and Ilex cassine parents) generally have good form, fewer spines, and good berry set. A list of cultivars of Ilex x attenuata can be found here.

Ilex x attenuata hybrid

Ilex opaca in Milton

In Milton, GA, I recently found an attractive grouping of American holly (Ilex opaca) in a landscaped arrangement by City Hall. The area also included some Ilex x attenuata hybrids and other native plants like Virginia sweetspire (Itea virginica). 

Normally I find American holly growing in old yards or cemeteries so I’m happy to see it get more use. A list of cultivars of Ilex opaca can be found here (please note that ‘Jersey Princess’ is not the same as ‘Blue Princess’ which is a non-native hybrid).

Deciduous hollies are popular with gardeners where winterberry (Ilex verticillata) has long been the favorite. It may be the most well-known dioecious plant for gardeners to learn that having male and female plants makes a difference in fruit set, perhaps in part to the creative naming like ‘Southern Gentleman’ and ‘Jim Dandy’ for the male cultivars. 

I have come across the larger possumhaw (Ilex decidua) two times in design. The most recent one was a huge instillation with over 20 plants; most plants were female but you could see a few fruitless males as well. Some of them were also near a huge hedge of Chinese holly (Ilex cornuta) which may help with fruit set if they bloomed at the same time. You can find cultivars of Ilex decidua here. 

Ilex verticillata before leaf drop

Ilex decidua with one leaf left

Another very common evergreen native holly is Yaupon holly (Ilex vomitoria). While most popular in a dwarf cultivar used as a foundation shrub (where I never see fruit), it is also used as a large shrub/tree in upright and weeping forms. There is an outstanding weeping one in my son’s neighborhood. It could be ‘Pendula’ or there might be other cultivars of that form. 

Ilex vomitoria, weeping form

Well, after all those hollies, the final plant is a hawthorn. Crataegus viridis ‘Winter King’ is a very popular cultivar for designed landscapes. Several years ago I stopped to look at a fine group of them gracing the front of a subdivision in Cherokee County. Unlike the Ilex shown earlier, these trees are grown with a single trunk and the fruit looks slightly different than the holly. Easy enough to tell the difference up close, not so much when driving by.

Crataegus viridis 

Crataegus viridus