Holly Selection

16 years ago

I am implementing a landscape plan which calls for four different types of hollies. Three are fairly easy for me to find in my area - Nellie R. Stevens, Blue Maid and Blue Princess.

However, I am having a hard time finding the fourth - Ilex "Dr. Kassab". Can anyone give me any suggestions for a replacement for that holly which might be easier to find here on Long Island? I would like a pyramidal holly which grows taller than wide.

And does anyone have experience with any of the four which they would like to share - pros and cons???

Thanks for any input!

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Comments (5)

User
16 years ago
I just put in a hedge of Blue Princess and one Blue Prince. I was told that I problably didn't even need to plant the Prince as there was problably one planted within a 1/4 mile radius of my house. I planted them in February and they are doing fine. They are not supposed to like it too hot so I decided to plant them where adjacent maples would protect from southern sun exposure. Nelie Stevens is supposed to be very heat tolerant and a quick and big grower--so give it space to grow. They are also quick attractive. Neither of these hollies is viciously thorny (unlike my Chinese holly that is worse than a cactus). Don't know if this is concern for you, but holly has the advantage of being relatively deer resistant. Neighborhood ate my azaleas but left the hollies alone. I fed with Holly Tone and mulched well. Good luck!
runktrun
16 years ago
Ilex ÂDragon LadyÂ is a columnar holly 20Â H x 6Â wide that in the past few years has become readily available at most nurseries. Its leaves are even smaller than those of your ÂBlue MaidÂ and it has a dark green color. In my opinion this is a real beauty with dense growth that should perform really well for you (zone 6-8). My experience with Ilex meservae, ÂBlue MaidÂ, ÂBlue PrincessÂ, and ÂDragon LadyÂ is they have performed very well for me and have been free from ilex insect problems, Ilex x ÂNellie R. StevensÂ on the other hand has had a number of insect related problems over the years, is more susceptible to winter burn, two out of three have matured into more airy less dense trees than I would have liked, and I believe it is worth noting that during the winter of (2005?) when we had unusual extreme low temps many Nellies were lost in my community. kt
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To be blunt: Garbage in = garbage out. Per dave_in_nova's comments - you can shear this one till the cows come home, and it is still going to be a piece of cr@p. It even appears that you have a China holly in the foreground along the brick wall. Good luck ever having this landscape planting ever seem like it is a success. The main reason I asked for an image of the whole plant is to try to determine what species/selection this actually is. That makes a huge difference in providing pruning advice. A selection like 'Dragon Lady' would need a different recommendation entirely than a selection like 'Blue Princess', since they have entirely different growth habits. A closeup of a few leaves doesn't provide the information necessary to separate these selections. I still think you have a heck of a challenge on your hands, and not one that will be solved with pruning advice. That is obviously a poorly pruned, grown, planted, and managed individual. I'd want to know a lot more before I merely tried to snip/tuck some of the current stems. I am bothering to comment on your situation because I am a KY resident and a practicing public Landscape Architect in Louisville. It is part of my job to help citizens with problems like this. A large part of my professional career was as horticulturist and landscape manager in KY prior to earning my degree in Landscape Architecture. There is often much more to consider with plant problems than the superficial conditions, and I'll assist to the extent that I'm allowed to.
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viburnumvalley
16 years ago
American holly (Ilex opaca) has hundreds of named clones that should perform fabulously for you in NY (assuming Long Island or such at zone 7). Certainly pyramidal and taller than wide, American holly has been grown as a traditional stately ornamental broadleaf evergreen since colonial times.

Some very good selections (all fruiting females), should you pursue this species:

Â'Jersey Princess'
Â'Dan Fenton'
Â'Satyr Hill'
Â'Judy Evans'
Â'Farage'
runktrun
16 years ago
skowprow,
Leave it to VV to slip in with a brilliant suggestion for your region. When I read his post I hit my palm to my fore head (no not with my index finger and thumb creating an "L" ) and wondered why I didn't immediately think of Ilex opaca. To be honest Ilex opaaca has woven it self so well into the portrait of native/non native historical plants that it blends into my landscape in such a way its presence is more intuitive than any thing else. If your design choice is to subtly blend into your environment Ilex opaca is a great choice but if you are looking for something that stand out and is more formal you might consider Ilex 'Dragon Lady'. kt
skoprow
Original Author
16 years ago
Thank you all - your advice is proving invaluable!

I managed to get out yesterday, and lo and behold actually found a nursery with Ilex "Dr. Kassab", but I wasn't very impressed with them! They were sort of sparse, and, who knows, maybe they weren't great specimens but they made the first impression. The spot where I was going to use these needs 6 shrubs that are dense, to form a screen to hide my "utility yard". Dragon Lady sounds like it would be a good fit there.

I will definitely look into the ilex opaca - I like the thought that it will blend into the landscape, which is what I'm looking for down the side of the property line. Need to do some more research on the varieties and availability here.

I was also impressed with the looks of the Oak Leaf holly I saw in one of the nurseries - anyone have any feedback on that one?

I'm busy thinking that by the time I plant all these hollies, I'd better name my property some holly name - "Holly Heaven", or something! LOL

Holly Selection

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Holly Selection

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