The Holly is the plant linked to the Christmas season and we celebrate it in many advent carols. It is a great evergreen and bright plant for a garden border with seasonal berries. I have also used it in a design to surround part of a sitting area to add a focus and all year round colour, especially in the winter when the small garden received little sun. The sitting area was also viewed through large windows from a family room making brightness and colour doubly important.
The holly I choose was Ilex x altaclerensis ‘Golden King’ which has dark green leaves with a outer margin in yellow, so a good warm cheerful colour and it has red berries. This holly also has no prickles, so more friendly than most hollies.
I. ‘Golden King’ can grow to a height of 4-8 metres and a spread of 2.5-4m wide, but it can be pruned to the size you wish. You might wonder why I. ‘Golden King’ bears berries when it has a male name, but it is in fact a female plant . You will need a male holly nearby to allow pollination by bees to get a crop of bright berries. (Image courtesy of www.crocus.co.uk).
It is one of my favourite hollies and well worth growing in your garden.