Nellie R Stevens Holly trees are an evergreen hybrid holly that is a perfect addition to transform your landscape. This tree is a cross between English Holly (Ilex aquifolium) and Chinese Holly (Ilex cornuta). These hybrid holly trees are hardy and require low maintenance, making them an excellent choice for homeowners. Originally cultivated in 1954 … Continue reading Transform Your Landscape with Nellie Stevens Hollies
When shopping for a Christmas tree at your local lot or tree farm, you’ll likely encounter many different types of evergreen Christmas trees. Picking out a perfect tree isn't easy. A tree's scent, color, strength of branches, shape, height and needle retention all matter. Depending on where you live will determine what type of trees … Continue reading Evergreen Christmas Tree Guide: What is the best?
Walking the fields to find the perfect live Christmas tree has become a tradition for many families. Not only is the tree an important part of the holidays, but garland, misteltoe and wreaths as well. The bright red berries of the Holly trees look stunning against the green backdrop of leaves and needles in our … Continue reading Holiday Holly Tree Berry-Best Practices
Early this spring a client asked me to plant our Nellie Stevens Holly trees to form a privacy screen at his place in Oxford, Maryland. Wow!! Oxford, Maryland, home of the original Nellie Stevens Holly, is where ~ 100 years ago, gardener Nellie R. Stevens experimented with holly cross-breeding and cultivated a new variety that carries … Continue reading Home of the Original Nellie Stevens Holly
The Nellie Stevens is denser than most upright pyramidal hollies. It responds well to pruning, creating additional lateral tip buds at each pruning cut. Nellie Stevens hollies tolerate wet feet well. At our evergreen tree farm in Damascus, Maryland, the clay soils are often super saturated through the winter but the Nellie Stevens holly is able to grow in these conditions.
The late spring is the time every year when the Nellie Stevens holly creates new berries. The hollies are cross pollinated by the bees. Hollies that have pollinated flowers will develop small green berries that will grow and become red in the fall.
The evergreen privacy fence of Holly trees drops some of their leaves in the spring and it's flower production, if pollinated by the bees, produces the berries.
We receive this question every year, and yes , you may use the holly berries for seasonal decorations. Prune or clip out the pieces of branch you need that contain the holly leaves and red berries.
