East Palatka Holly and other hybrids

Ilex Xattenuata Ashe

(Ilex opaca X I. cassine)

EYE-lex X ah-ten-you-AY-tah

Aquifoliaceae

Explanation of name: Ilex is the Latin name for an oak (oaks and hollies can have similar leaves). Attenuate means tapered.

Natural range: The Ilex Xattenuata hybrids stem from hybridizations(s) involving I. opaca and I. cassine. (This is not the same species as the South American “Ilex attenuata” Steyermark, which is an illegitimate name.)

Recognition: East Palatka Holly resembles Dahoon Holly (Ilex cassine) but tends toward proportionately narrower leaves and a growth habit with a well defined single leader (as opposed to the shrubbier growth of I. cassine). The fruit displays in female East Palatka Holly are more vivid and more plentiful than in I. cassine. Cultivars in this series are numerous, and include:

‘East Palatka’, with no or few leaf spines, these when present small. Trees pyramidal with abundant red berries (on this female cultivar). Originated by hybridaztion near East Palatka, FL.

‘Fosteri’, with spiny leaves and a preference for latitudes to the north of South Florida. http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/hort/consumer/factsheets/trees-new/ilex_attenuata-fosteri.html . See UFST315

‘Savannah’ with irregular shape but with single leader; bark nearly white; leaves glossy and with small spines; producing abundant red berries, mostly at higher latitudes. http://www.floridata.com/ref/I/ilx_sav.cfm. See UFST316

Landscape uses (data from DAV, PBCC, UFST314): Beautiful small trees with straight trunks, having glossy leaves and abundant red berries on the females. Best on acid soil with ample moisture. A favorite with berry-eating birds.

Notes: East Palatka Holly was the Olympic holly of the Atlanta Games. Hollies are dioecious (separate male and female individuals); full fruiting requires the presence of a male for pollination.