Ilex verticillata 'Jim Dandy'
Jim Dandy Common Winterberry

 Plant Type:
 Growth Forms:
 Hardiness:
 Deciduous / Evergreen:
 Flower Notes:
White (Spring; small, not ornamentally important)
 Foliage Notes:
Green (Lustrous dark green summer foliage); Yellow (Yellow-brown to occasionally showy yellow to purple-tinged)
 Ultimate Height:
3-10 feet
 Ultimate Spread:
4-8 feet
 Soil Notes:
Prefers moist, acid soils; tolerates heavy, poorly drained soils
 Diagnostic Characteristics:
Leaves (1.5-3" long and 0.5-1" wide) are alternate, simple, and finely pubescent beneath (at least on veins) and have finely serrated margins. Buds very small (0.06" long). Stems angled, olive-brown to purplish-brown, finely pubescent and lenticelled, peeling when older. Raised leaf scar with two blackish projections on side.

Additional Information

This species, like other hollies, is dioecious, and 'Jim Dandy' is an early-flowering male cultivar suited for pollinating northern female variants, such as 'Red Sprite'. The slow growing Jim Dandy Winterberry is dense and compact. Adaptable to wet soils, but tolerates more normal conditions also. Native habitats are swampy areas. Leaf spot and mildew can be serious problems. Develops chlorosis on alkaline soils.

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