Chinese Holly, also known as Wild White Ash Leaf and Coral Holly, belongs to the genus Ilex in the Aquifoliaceae family. Trees can reach up to 13 meters in height; the crown is ovate, with smooth bark in a grayish green color. Young branches are light green. Leaves are alternate, long ovate to lanceolate, thin herbaceous, with scattered shallow serrations along the margin, and a deep green, glossy surface. Flowers are solitary, with separate male and female plants, arranged in corymbs at the branch tips and axils of leaves; they are bright purple-red with a fragrance. Fruits are ellipsoid, deep red when ripe, and persist through winter. Flowering period is in May, and fruit ripening from October to November.
Primarily propagated by sowing, cutting propagation can also be used.
Harvested after fruit ripens in autumn, the fruit skin is removed and washed clean. The seeds are treated with cold stratification in moist sand to stimulate germination, and sown before March of the following spring. Seedling stage
Slow-growing, requires careful cultivation and management. Holly seeds often require a year to germinate without pre-germination treatment.
It is advisable to perform softwood cuttings during the plum rain season. The cutting length should be 6-8 cm, with the lower leaves trimmed off, leaving 1-2 upper leaves and shortening them by 1/3. After soaking the cuttings in a 200 mg/L NAA solution for 3 hours, insert them to a depth of half their length. Use a mixture of sand or perlite and peat soil (3:1) as the substrate. After planting, cover with a shade house, frequently spray water to maintain moisture, and roots should develop within about a month.
Red Holly trees commonly adopt a natural sympodial central leader shape, rounded shape, conical shape, or a mixed central leader shape. They grow new branches multiple times a year, making them highly resistant to pruning. In summer, a shaping should be done once, and in autumn, based on different landscaping needs, they can be sheared into a flat shape or trimmed into a spherical shape, with proper thinning of branches to maintain a certain canopy and branch form.
After 2 to 3 years of cultivation in the nursery, the seedlings can be transplanted and established. It is best to do so in spring, ensuring that the roots are not damaged during digging and that they are transplanted with soil. Initially, pay attention to weeding and irrigation as needed, and strengthen management. Holly is prone to infestation by white ants, and the dense foliage and cracked bark areas are highly susceptible to soot blight; timely prevention and treatment are essential. In colder regions during winter, measures such as piling soil for insulation can be taken. The main disease is leaf spot, which can be controlled with carbendazim and chlorothalonil.
