Hedging or shrub
How to grow holly
Ilex aquifolium
Holly grows in sun or deep shade on any soil that drains, and is one of the few evergreens that thrives under trees. Plant small pot-grown plants between October and March, because holly hates root disturbance and large specimens sulk for years. For berries you need a female variety with a male within about 10 m, or the self-fertile 'J.C. van Tol'. Those berries are a reason to grow holly for wildlife gardening: birds eat them through winter, and bees work the small white flowers in May. Clip once in August.
- Hardiness
- Fully hardy
- Position
- Sun to shade
- Soil
- Fertile, free-draining
- Ideal pH
- 6.0 to 7.5
- Water
- Moderate while establishing
- Feeding
- Light feeder
Sowing and planting holly
WhenPlant Oct to Mar; clip Aug; berries Oct to Jan on female plants
Starting off
Plant pot-grown stock Oct to Mar or Apr to May; small plants in 2 to 3 litre pots establish far better than large ones, as holly resents root disturbance. Propagate by 10 cm semi-ripe cuttings in Aug to Sep in gritty compost in a cold frame with bottom heat at 18°C, rooting slowly over 6 to 12 months. Berries sown in Oct need two winters to germinate and 10 years to a hedge plant.
Spacing and planting
I. aquifolium reaches 10 to 15 m by 5 m as a tree over 50 years; hedges are held at 1.5 to 4 m and 60 to 90 cm thick, and I. × altaclerensis 'Golden King' 6 m by 4 m. Plant pot-grown or root-balled hedging at 45 to 60 cm apart in a single row (2 per metre), 1 m from walls; for berries include one male ('Silver Queen', 'Blue Prince') within 10 m of female 'J.C. van Tol' (self-fertile) or 'Golden King' (female despite the name). Clipped standards suit a 45 to 60 cm pot of loam-based compost.
Varieties worth growing
- Common holly (Ilex aquifolium)
- The native green holly, best for a long dense hedge. Seed-raised plants may be male or female, so a hedge of them berries here and there.
- 'J.C. van Tol'
- Self-fertile female with dark, almost spineless leaves and a heavy crop of red berries without a partner. The one to plant if you only have room for one.
- 'Argentea Marginata'
- Female with cream-edged leaves and red berries; young growth is flushed pink. Brightens a shady corner.
- I. × altaclerensis 'Golden King'
- Female despite the name: broad, nearly smooth leaves edged gold, and red-brown berries. Tolerates town air and coastal wind.
- 'Silver Queen'
- Male despite the name, so no berries of its own, but a handsome cream-margined pollinator for any female nearby.
Holly month by month
Timings are for central England. Allow two weeks later in the north and on cold, heavy soil.
- January
Nothing to do. Enjoy the berries the birds have left.
- February
Nothing to do. Order plants.
- March
Plant in mild weather. Light feed on young plants and hedges, then mulch.
- April
Plant. Renovate an overgrown hedge, one face only. Remove plain green shoots from variegated plants.
- May
Small white flowers open; bees do the pollinating. Water anything planted since autumn.
- June
Old leaves yellow and drop as new growth opens. Water new plants weekly in dry spells.
- July
Water new plants. Top-dress pot-grown standards.
- August
Clip hedges and topiary once, when the new growth has firmed up.
- September
Take semi-ripe cuttings. Finish clipping early in the month.
- October
Planting season opens. Berries colour on female plants.
- November
Plant. Sow cleaned berries outdoors if you have the patience for a two-winter wait.
- December
Cut berried sprigs for the house. Net a branch or two earlier in the month if the birds usually beat you to it.
Feeding holly
A light feeder. Young plants and hedges get a small feed and a mulch each March until they are growing strongly; a mature holly in the ground needs nothing but its own leaf litter.
Low, slow-growing; a light spring feed.
Feeding plan
At planting, October to March
5 g per litre of root ball: 10 g for a 2 litre pot, 15 g for a 3 litre pot, rubbed onto the outside of the root ball or sprinkled in the hole where the roots will touch it. Once only.
March, young plants and hedges
50 g/m², the low end of the label: a small handful (about 25 g) scattered around a single young plant, or 50 g per metre run over a strip 1 m wide for a hedge.
March, after feeding
Garden compost
A 5 cm mulch of compost, leaf mould or composted bark. Holly is a woodland plant and a leafy mulch suits it better than any fertiliser.
March, clipped plants in pots
2 g per litre of compost scattered on the surface and watered in. A 45 cm pot holds about 30 litres, so 60 g.
Established plants in the ground
Nothing
No feed. Leave the fallen leaves under the plant where they are not in the way.
Signs to watch
Yellow leaves with green veins on new growth on chalk → iron locked out → chelated iron and a compost mulch, uncommon on established plants. Pale leaves and heavy leaf drop on a new hedge in May → transplant shock and drought, not hunger → water 10 litres per plant weekly and mulch. Older leaves yellow between the veins → magnesium short on sand → Epsom salts drench. No berries on a healthy female
Pests, diseases and problems
Pale yellow-green or brown blotches inside the leaf, each with a wandering mine
Holly leaf miner, the grub of a small fly, present on almost every holly
Tolerate it. The damage is cosmetic, clipping in August removes many mined leaves, and blue tits peck out the grubs in winter.
Black blotches on the leaves and black lesions on young stems in autumn and winter, followed by leaf drop, starting low down
Holly leaf blight, a Phytophthora that spreads in cool wet weather
Cut out affected shoots in dry weather, rake up and bin fallen leaves, and thin surrounding growth to let air through. Disinfect tools afterwards.
Young leaves at the shoot tips curled tightly with black or dark green aphids inside in May and June
Holly aphid
Leave it. Only the soft new growth is affected and the leaves stay curled but healthy. Clipping takes them off.
Leaves sticky and coated in black sooty mould, with brown or white scales on the stems and leaf undersides
Scale insects, usually cushion scale or soft scale
Wipe the mould off pot plants with soapy water, prune out badly coated shoots, and let ladybirds and parasitic wasps work. A healthy plant outgrows it.
Older inner leaves turn yellow and fall in May and June while the tips are growing well
Normal leaf turnover; evergreens shed their oldest leaves as the new flush opens
Nothing to do. Worry only if the leaf drop is on new growth or on a plant moved in the last year, which points to drought at the root.
Pruning
Pruning and care
Clip once in Aug when the growth has hardened, using secateurs on specimens and shears on hedges, keeping the base wider than the top; clipping in spring removes the flowers and therefore the berries. Variegated types throw plain green shoots, which are cut out at the base whenever seen. Holly renovates from bare wood, so cut neglected hedges back one face at a time in Apr, or reduce a tree to a s
Good to knowUsually needs a male and female plant for berries; clip in late summer. An excellent intruder-proof hedge.
Growing holly in pots
Holly makes a good clipped cone, ball or standard in a 45 to 60 cm pot of loam-based compost such as John Innes No 3, in sun or shade. Choose a pot with large drainage holes and stand it on feet, because holly dislikes wet roots in winter. Water weekly in summer, more in hot weather, top-dress with fresh compost each March, and repot every three or four years. A potted female still needs a male nearby to berry unless it is 'J.C. van Tol'.
Holly: common questions
Why does my holly have no berries?
Most often because the plant is male, or is a female with no male close enough to pollinate it. Only female hollies berry, and all except self-fertile kinds such as 'J.C. van Tol' need a male within about 10 m. Clipping in spring also removes the flowers, and a plant under five or six years old may simply be too young.
How fast does holly grow?
Slowly at first, then about 15 to 30 cm a year once established. A hedge from small plants takes eight to ten years to reach 1.8 m, which is the price of a hedge that then needs clipping only once a year.
Can holly grow in full shade?
Yes, green hollies grow in deep shade, including under deciduous trees. They berry less and grow more openly there than in sun, and variegated varieties keep their colour better with some direct light.
Sources
Growing information on this page was checked against these references in November 2026. Feeding rates are Dr Forest label rates.