FNPS Plant Database

Ilex opaca var. arenicola

scrub holly

PHOTOS COMING SOON!

Nomenclature

Common Name:

scrub holly

Synonym(s):

Genus species:

Ilex opaca var. arenicola

Family:

Aquifoliaceae

Plant Specifics

Form:

tree

Size:

12-20 ft

Life Span:

Long-lived perennial

Flower Color:

white

Fruit Color:

red

Phenology:

Evergreen. Blooms in spring. Fruits ripen in fall and persist into winter.

Noted For:

Showy Fruits, Thorns, Interesting Foliage

Landscaping

Recommended Uses:

Specimen plant. Slow growing.

Considerations:

Leaves have sharp spines. It's dioecious; so make sure you have at least one male plant in the vicinity to produce berries on the females.

Availability:

Native Nurseries

Propagation:

Can be propagated from seed, but slow to germinate.

Light:

Full Sun, Part Sun

Moisture Tolerance:

Always Flooded------------------------------------------------Extremely Dry

Coming Soon!

Not wet but not extremely dry ---to--- Very long very dry periods

Salt Water Flooding Tolerance:

Unknown

Salt Spray/Salty Soil Tolerance:

Low/no tolerance of salty wind or direct salt spray

Soil or Other Substrate:

Sand

Soil pH:

acidic

Suitable to Grow In:

9A,9B,10A

USDA zones are based on the average annual extreme minimum winter temperature.



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Ecology

Wildlife:

Pollinators, Birds, Mammals

Pollinated by bees.  Documented bee species include  Augochloropsis sumptuosa, Megachilepetulans and Xylocopa virginica krombeini (Deyrup et al. 2002). 

Fruits principally eaten by birds.

Native Habitats:

Scrub.

Natural Range in Florida:

Comments:

Ethnobotany:

The wood is pale, tough, close-grained, takes a good polish, and is used for handles, engraving blocks, and cabinet work. It can also be dyed and used as a substitute for ebony.

General Comments:

Citations:

Burns, Russell M.; Honkala, Barbara H.; [Technical coordinators] 1990. Silvics of North America: Volume 2. Hardwoods. United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service, Agriculture Handbook 654 ( https://www.fs.usda.gov/treesearch/pubs/1548 ). 



Deyrup, Mark; Jayanthi Edirisinghe, and Beth Norden.  2002. The diversity and floral hosts of bees at the Archbold Biological Station, Florida (Hymenoptera: Apoidea). Insecta Mundi. 544.  https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/insectamundi/544.



Nelson, Gil.  2003.  Florida's Best Landscape Plants. Association of Florida Native Nurseries.



Wunderlin, R. P., B. F. Hansen, A. R. Franck, and F. B. Essig. 2021. Atlas of Florida Plants ( https://florida.plantatlas.usf.edu/ ).  Institute for Systematic Botany, University of South Florida, Tampa.

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