Looking good in its full fruit mode in mid January is the holly, Ilex ‘Emily Brunner’. This hybrid of Ilex cornuta and Ilex latifolia has proven to be one of the best specimen hollies we grow. A mature specimen is 20′ tall x 20′ wide, so if you’re planting this, give it enough space. Years ago, a University of Tennessee student first showed this as a seedling to the late nurseryman, Don Shadow, who immediately realized its value, and named it for the student. This is a female holly, so it needs a male nearby to produce fruit. We’re guessing ours is fertilized by a nearby hedge of Ilex ‘Nellie R. Stevens’. Despite all the fruit, I don’t ever recall seeing a single garden seedling.

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Hi, this is a beautiful Hooly. Can it be trimmed to lift the canopy if I plant one?
Certainly. We have three in the garden. Two are un-pruned, and one is lifted up to 8′ to allow walking underneath.
Gorgeous! Thank you for sharing so much inspired goodness!