Holly BushesA Grower's Guide to Holly
Holly Types

Native & Other Hollies

Beyond the mainstream species lies a rich group of native and specialty hollies — possumhaw, dahoon, lusterleaf, and longstalk holly — for wildlife, wet ground, and collectors' gardens.

Hollies for special places

This group gathers the less-common but valuable hollies. Possumhaw (Ilex decidua) is a deciduous native that, like winterberry, sets bare-branch red-orange fruit. Dahoon (Ilex cassine) is a Southern evergreen for wet sites; lusterleaf holly (Ilex latifolia) has bold, glossy, almost magnolia-like leaves; and longstalk holly (Ilex pedunculosa) dangles its berries on unusually long stems and shrugs off cold.

Quick tip: most of these are superb for naturalized and wildlife plantings, where their berries feed birds through winter.

Growing native and specialty hollies

Requirements vary by species, but most want moist, acidic soil and full sun to part shade. Choose one matched to your climate and site — several tolerate the wet ground that defeats other shrubs.

Popular native & other hollies

The 6 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.