The Dwarf Yaupon Holly (Ilex vomitoria ‘nana’) is native along the Eastern States and into Central Florida and is well known for its slow growth habit, easy care and tolerance to pruning. For those not familiar with this shrub it has similar growth and pruning habits to a boxwood shrub in the northern regions of the country. Hence its main use can be for a low border planting to define an area and give structure to a planting bed. This holly can be pruned as a formal low hedge, cute little balls of green and/or a larger massing with larger accent plants within its design.
Although it can reach a height of 5 feet it can tolerate pruning around 2 feet for years but once it is fully matured it likes to stay around the 3-foot range. It does not produce any berries and its flowers are tiny and insignificant. The recommended use as the base planting for your garden bed design gives your accent plants a contrast to work from and stand out more as focal points.
So if you are looking for that dependable foreground design element to front your landscapes, border your pathways or pool planters this could be the right plant for your landscape.
This plant column is a joint effort by all at In The Garden, Sanibel’s garden center, located at 3889 Sanibel Captiva Road, Sanibel Florida.