Chinese holly
Ilex cornuta
USDA zones7 to 9
SunHandles full sun to partial sun
WaterHandles dry to moist soil
Size8 to 15 feet tall8 to 15 feet wide
- Growth rate
- Rapid
- Habit
- Dense
- Bloom season
- Spring
- Bloom color
- White
- Foliage color
- Green
- Soil types
- Sand, loam, clay
Garden uses
Attracts
Notes
Chinese holly (Ilex cornuta) is a shrub for hedges, privacy screens, specimen planting, and foundation plantings. It is hardy to USDA zone 7, or down to 0°F (-18°C). This plant likes full or part sun and dry to moist, sandy, loamy, or clay soil. It grows fast into a dense, evergreen mass of green leaves. Fragrant white flowers open from early to late spring and attract bees and birds. Deer tend to browse other plants first.
Pairs well with Beautyberry, Mondo grass, Red spider lily, and Big bluestem.
Native range
Eastern China and Korea.