Holly BushesA Grower's Guide to Holly
Holly Types

Hybrid Hollies

Hybrid hollies — led by fast-growing Nellie R. Stevens — are modern crosses bred for dense, glossy, pyramidal evergreens that make outstanding privacy screens and berry heavily.

The best privacy hollies

Crossing the best traits of different species has produced some of the finest garden hollies. Nellie R. Stevens (Ilex cornuta × aquifolium) is the star — fast, dense, glossy, and so free-fruiting it is the default choice for a quick evergreen screen. Foster holly, Emily Bruner, Mary Nell, and the burgundy-tinged Red Holly series (Oak Leaf, Robin, Oakland, Liberty, Cardinal) round out a group prized for pyramidal form and red winter berries.

Quick tip: Nellie R. Stevens fruits heavily even without a dedicated male nearby, which is a big reason it is the most planted screening holly in the South.

Growing hybrid hollies

Most take full sun to part shade in well-drained, slightly acidic soil, and grow quickly into tall, narrow pyramids. Hardiness is generally USDA zones 6 to 9. Prune in late winter to maintain a screen.

Popular hybrid hollies

The 12 hollies below are among the most widely grown and dependable in this group. Each profile covers foliage, sex and pollination, berries, size, hardiness, and how to grow it well.