Not to worry – plant one of each if you can then you will have a holly bush with wonderfully golden variegated leaves and – in the case of ‘Golden King’ – berries as well.
Do not worry that the bushes will eventually eat you out of house and home.
They are relatively slow growing and if you plant them with a view to cutting a few stems every Christmas you can keep them within bounds by means of this annual pruning.
They make great back-of-the-border plants and are a terrific backdrop to other plants in summer.
Look around and you will find all kinds of variation in both leaves and fruit – some of the berries are red, others orange and there are even yellow varieties.
Some leaves are variegated, others dark green, some have very few spines on the leaves, others, like hedgehog holly Ilex aquifolium “Ferox” have so many spines they erupt through the centre of the leaf as well as appearing on the edges.
There are even blue-leafed hollies – well, blue-ish leafed – to add to the variety.
None of these is too fussy about the growing conditions. They will do well in sun or shade, though leaf variegation will be less dramatic in deep gloom, and they can cope with most soils.
Plant a container-grown holly now and if it is already in berry you can risk taking a few sprigs this Christmas as well as looking forward to masses more in the Christmases to come.
Don’t miss Alan’s gardening column today and every day in the Daily Express. For information on his range of gardening products, visit www.alantitchmarsh.com
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