Ilex aquifolium 'BACCIFLAVA SPINELESS' spineless holly - female

Bacciflava Spineless is a handsome selection of Bacciflava holly variety with almost entirely spineless foliage. Apart from that it is also valued for a profusion of highly attractive rich yellow fruit in autumn and winter. The berries are quite firm for a long time and will soften after a significant thaw, usually in mid winter, and only then the birds will feast on them. By then you can enjoy the profusion of beautiful berries as they decorate the plant with its cheerful colour on cold and grey days of winter. They are not edible nor poisonous but contain saponins which cause severe discomfort if eaten. Beware that Bacciflava is a female variety which needs a male plant nearby for pollination of its flowers.

Evergreen leaves are very dark green and highly glossy. Bacciflava Spineless has the advantage of entire, slightly undulated foliage with only a sharp tip already from young age. Annual growth is about 15-20 cm which makes it a rather slow or at most moderate grower. Natural shape is pyramidal, quite symmetrical, with a larger bottom and a slender top. As it ages it gets more rounded at the top and older plants exhibit almost a columnar habit. Garden grown plants reach some 3-4m tall, whereas those growing in the wild, and in parks and arboretums with plenty of root space can get twice as big.

Hollies are often pruned. It is common to cut some branches in December as a Christmas decoration, and to achieve denser or smaller plants they can be pruned in early spring after all frosts. Early summer trimming is also possible, it will help the plants maintain its neat shape.

Grow hollies in moist but well-drained, fertile soil. They can take periods of drought once established but dislike compacted, heavy-clay-based soils that turn very dry in summer, and often too wet in winter. If your soil is such, dig the planting hole only half the depth of the root ball, refine what you dig out and mix well with quality substrate of highly acidic level (low pH value). Using this mixture make a gradual slope from the stem to the original ground level and tamp it down as much as you can. Your root ball should not look like a molehill but more like a wide and flat mound. Mulch it well and keep watering it more often as it will be more prone to drying out as opposed to most common flat-in-the-ground transplanting.

Hollies do best in full sun but can also grow in shade where they will loose their compact habit. This variety proved very hardy even in full sun in winter. However, if you live in a region with cold winters and long-lasting frost we recommend growing it in position sheltered from drying winds, and preferably shaded from winter sun. Before and during winter when the soil is not frozen provide good watering. Hardy to about -27°C (USDA zone 5b).

Last update 21-11-2020