Holly BushesA Grower's Guide to Holly
Holly Types

Winterberry Holly

Winterberry (Ilex verticillata) is a deciduous holly grown for one spectacular effect: after its leaves drop, its bare branches blaze with dense red berries all winter.

Berries without leaves

Unlike evergreen hollies, Ilex verticillata sheds its leaves in fall — and that is the point. Stripped bare, the branches reveal masses of brilliant red (or gold) berries that light up the winter landscape, feed birds, and make unbeatable cut stems for holiday arrangements. This native thrives in wet soils where little else fruits so freely.

Winterberry is strongly dioecious: a female such as Winter Red or Berry Poppins needs a compatible male (Jim Dandy for early bloomers, Southern Gentleman for late) blooming at the same time to fruit.

Quick tip: match the pollinator to the bloom time — 'Jim Dandy' for dwarf/early females, 'Southern Gentleman' for full-size/late ones — or you'll get a berryless plant.

Growing winterberry

It loves moist to wet, acidic soil and full sun (for the heaviest fruit), and is hardy through USDA zones 3 to 9 — the most cold-hardy of the popular hollies.

Popular winterberry holly

The 10 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.