Ilex vomitoria
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Yaupon Holly
Aquifoliaceae
Plant Specifics
| Form: | Tree | |
| Size: | 8-25 ft tall by 5-8 ft wide, clonal. | |
| 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 flowers, Showy fruits, Interesting foliage, Hurricane wind resistance |
Landscaping
| Recommended Uses: | Specimen tree. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Considerations: | Tends to produce suckers, which can be removed if you wish to have a specimen tree. It's dioecious; so make sure you have at least one male plant in the vicinity to produce berries on the females. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Propagation: | Naturally clonal, so can transplant from from stem cuttings. Seeds of most holly species require 2-3 years of dormancy before they will germinate. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Availability: | Big box stores, Friends, Native nurseries, Quality nurseries, Seed | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Light: | Full Sun, Part Shade | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Moisture Tolerance: |
always floodedextremely dry |
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| (Somewhat moist, no flooding ----- to ----- Very long very dry periods) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Moisture Tolerance: | Somewhat moist, no flooding ----- to ----- Very long very dry periods | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Salt Water Flooding Tolerance: | Tolerant of inundation with brackish water | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Salt Spray/ Salty Soil Tolerance: | Moderate. Tolerant of salty wind and may get some salt spray. Exposure to salt spray would be uncommon (major storms). | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Soil or other substrate: | Sand | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Soil pH: | Adaptable | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Ecology
| Wildlife: |
Fruits are eaten by birds. | |
| Insects: | Bees pollinate flowers. | |
| Native Habitats: | Coastal scrub, coastal dunes, coastal flatwoods, river swamps, scrub, secondary woods, pine-oak-hickory woods. |
Distribution and Planting Zones
Natural Range in Florida
USDA Zones
Suitable to grow in:
10A 8A 8B 9A 9B
USDA zones are based on minimum winter temperatures
Comments
| Ethnobotany: | Despite its scientific name, yaupon holly makes a good tea that is commercially available. This tea has substantial caffeine content. | |
| General Comments: | Many cultivars have been developed or found in the wild ranging from weeping forms to little round balls ('Shillings').
To get fruits, both a male and a female are required. Although there are issues with provenance, 'Shillings' is a male and can provide an inconspicuous source of pollen for larger females. The issue (with no scientifically vetted answer) is whether pollen from a natural dwarf could have any affect on wild populations of yaupon holly (the author suspects 'no' as being dwarf is unlikely to provide any selective advantage in the wild. |