5 Favorite Varieties of Holly

'Blue Princess' Holly (lIex x meserveae 'Blue Princess')

'Blue Princess' is not so much blue, as a dark green with a bluish cast. The lIex x meserveae is a 6- to 8-foot shrub with the familiar glossy, toothed leaves common to most hollies. It can occasionally grow to 15-feet. It has red berries that make for winter interest, provided you can keep the wild birds from eating them. Along with the plants' attractive foliage, these red berries make the plant sufficiently pleasing to the eye to warrant using it as a specimen plant. To ensure berry production, provide a 'Blue Prince' as a pollinator.

• USDA Growing Zones: 5–8
• Color Varieties: Dark green foliage with bluish overtones; red berries
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
• Soil Needs: Moist, well-drained, slightly acidic

'Hetz' Japanese Holly (Ilex crenata 'Hetzii')

'Hetzii' is a shrubby, rounded cultivar of the Ilex crenata species, commonly called Japanese holly. This particular cultivar grows only 3 to 6 feet tall, with tiny leaves that make it resemble a boxwood when viewed from a distance. Unlike 'Blue Princess', this bush bears black-colored berries. But as with all types of Ilex, you need a male and a female if you want the pleasure of a berry crop, since these are dioecious plants in which each specimen has either male or female flowers.

• USDA Growing Zones: 5–8
• Color Varieties: Deep green, glossy leaves; blackish berries
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
• Soil Needs: Moist, well-drained, slightly acidic

'Sky Pencil' Holly (Ilex crenata 'Sky Pencil')

Like the 'Hetz' cultivar, 'Sky Pencil' is an Ilex crenata (Japanese holly). Also, like 'Hetz', it bears tiny leaves and black-colored berries. But the similarities end there. The cultivar name of this plant gives a good indication of its signature feature—this is a bush that is extremely narrow relative to its height. It can grow 10 feet high, with a spread of only 2 to 3 feet.

This feature makes 'Sky Pencil' popular in landscaping around front entries; such columnar plants effectively frame an entrance. Alternatively, another use for this holly shrub in foundation plantings is at the corners of a house (for a "bookend" effect).

• USDA Growing Zones: 5b–9
• Color Varieties: Dark green foliage; blackish berries
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
• Soil Needs: Moist, well-drained, slightly acidic

Inkberry (Ilex glabra)

This is another black-berried holly shrub, thus its common name, inkberry. As a trade-off for being rather plain-looking, inkberry is tolerant of a wide variety of challenging conditions, ranging from too much shade to too much moisture in the soil. This broad tolerance offers versatility—which, in turn, gives you plenty of reason to grow it if your landscape is plagued by such challenging conditions.

This species has an upright, rounded form, growing to as much as 8 feet tall. The leaves have the familiar glossy dark green color, but without the sharp teeth found on most hollies. It is known for having very good performance in damp, wet locations. It suckers rather profusely, but cultivars such as 'Shamrock' are better behaved in this regard.

• USDA Growing Zones: 5–10a
• Color Varieties: Dark green foliage; small black berries
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
• Soil Needs: Moist, well-drained, slightly acidic; tolerates wet soils

Winterberry (Ilex verticillata)

When a shrub in the landscape drops its leaves, it is seldom a cause for celebration. Generally, we tolerate a plant's being deciduous, but we prefer it when it is clothed in foliage. Winterberry holly, however, is an exception to the rule. This deciduous form of holly is grown almost exclusively for its display of red berries. Winterberry is at its prettiest after it has lost its leaves.

This holly grows 3 to 15 feet tall, with the dark-green toothed leaves common to hollies. This species has an even greater tendency to sucker and spread than most hollies. It has a variety of landscape uses but is most often massed or used to attract birds. It is also a common shrub to use in rain gardens.

• USDA Growing Zones: 3–9
• Color Varieties: Dark green glossy leaves; profuse bright red berries
• Sun Exposure: Full sun to part shade
• Soil Needs: Moist, well-drained, slightly acidic; good tolerance for poorly drained soils