Ilex opaca Aiton

American Holly

Tree

Perennial

Vascular

American Holly is a native evergreen tree in the Holly family (Aquifoliaceae). It occurs statewide in Alabama. American Holly grows in a variety of forest types from disturbed woodlands to mature hardwood forest, and on floodplains. This small to medium sized tree grows between 30 and 50 feet in height. The bark is smooth and light gray to tan in color. The leaves are alternate, petiolate, evergreen, elliptic in outline with sharp spine tipped teeth along their margins. The leaves are thick and leathery in texture. American Holly is dioecious, with separate male and female plants. The flowers are small and greenish white. Male flowers occur in axillary cymes of 3-7 flowers. The flowers have 4 green sepals, 4 greenish-white petals, and 4 stamens, and no pistil. The female flowers are solitary or in axillary cymes of 1-3. Female flowers have 4 green sepals, 4 greenish-white petals, 4 sterile stamens, and a single pistil. The fruit (only produced by the female plant) is a bright red or occasionally orange or yellow drupe. Each fruit contains 4 hard seed (pyrenes). The seed are tan in color and irregularly angled on the back. Many species of birds and small mammals feed on the fruit. American Holly is a popular small tree for the home landscape. It tolerates a wide range of soil and moisture types. It is also shade tolerant and not browsed by deer. Sprigs of American Holly are often used as Christmas decorations. The fruit are slightly toxic to humans, and should not be eaten. Many cultivars are available including ones with yellow fruit, dwarf forms, and ones with spineless leaves. There are also hybrids between the American Holly and other species. Ilex ×attenuata Ashe (often called the “Savannah Holly”) is a hybrid between American Holly and Dahoon Holly (Ilex cassine Linnaeus).--A. Diamond

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Native FAC- (NWPL)

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