Ilex vomitoria
Common Name(s):
Previously known as:
- Ilex ligustrina
- Phonetic Spelling
- EYE-leks vom-ih-TOR-ee-ah
- This plant has low severity poison characteristics.
- See below
- Description
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Yaupon holly is a woody, broadleaf evergreen shrub or small tree in the holly family (Aquifoliaceae), native to the eastern United States and Mexico. The common name 'yaupon' is derived from Catawban. The leaves of the parent plant were used for ceremonial tea, which, when consumed in large quantities, caused a cleansing now memorialized by the specific epithet vomitoria.
Plant yaupon holly in full sun to deep shade, though it will produce more fruit and have a thicker canopy with more sun. It is tolerant of a wide range of soil types and can withstand drought, salt spray, and occasional flooding. This plant can take heavy pruning, transplants easily, and is resistant to Phytophthora root rot. Propagate by seed or stem cutting. It is dioecious, meaning it has separate male and female plants. So, to achieve the attractive bright red signature fruits both male and female shrubs that bloom in the same time period must be planted.
The leaves are small, leathery and bright green and are not prickly like other hollies. The flowers attract bees and butterflies. This holly can rapidly reach 10 to 20 feet tall and 8 to 12 feet wide, so allow proper spacing when planting multiples. It will form thickets unless the suckers are removed.
Yaupon holly has many cultivars including dwarf and weeping forms. It also has many uses in the landscape: Consider it for drought tolerant, native, pollinator, rain, water, or winter gardens. Take advantage of the showy red fruits, which are enjoyed by songbirds and small mammals, and use this shrub as a specimen in the ground or in a large container. Mass planted, it is ideal for shearing into a screen, hedge, or topiary, and it makes a great foundation planting. The tightly packed leaves also work well as a windbreak or barrier planting. It is at home in coastal, woodland, or naturalized areas.
Fire Risk: This plant has a high flammability rating and should not be planted within the defensible space of your home. Select plants with a low flammability rating for the sites nearest your home.
Quick ID Hints:
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Leaves are alternate, one inch long, and half an inch wide with rounded apex and base.
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Very young stems are purplish in color and turn silvery-gray as they age.
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Petioles are purplish.
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Produces translucent red berries.
Insects, Diseases, and Other Plant Problems: Holly leaf miner, spider mites, whitefly, and scale are occasional problems. Leaf spot, leaf rot, tar spot, and powdery mildew are potential disease problems.
The Clemson Cooperative Extension Home and Garden Information Center has a factsheet on common diseases and insect pests.
Additional Video: Yaupon holly part of a series of Native Plant Picks from the North Carolina Sea Grant Coastal Landscapes Initiative.
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- Profile Video:
- See this plant in the following landscape:
- West Side Foundation Planting in Cabarrus County
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- 'Aurea'
Yellow fruits - Bordeaux™ ('Condeaux')
Male, 4-5 ft tall x 5-6 ft wide. New growth purplish-red. - 'Dare County' (syn. 'Virginia Dare')
Female. Orange fruits. Upright habit.
'Dwarf' (syn. 'Nana')
- 'Jewel'
Female. Heavy fruit production. Open, mounding habit. - 'Otis Miley'
Orange-yellow fruits, small leaves - 'Pride of Houston'
Medium size, heavy fruit - 'Stokes Dwarf' (syn. Schilling's Dwarf')
male cultivar; more compact than 'Dwarf'
'Taylor's Rudolph'
- 'Wiggins' (syn. 'Wiggins Yellow')
Yellow fruits; upright spreading habit.
'Will Fleming' (syn. 'Will's Upright')
Compact dwarf, sterile female 'Folsom's Weeping' (syn. 'Gray's Weeping')
Heavy fruit production, pendulous. Female and male clones.
Female; dwarf habit.
Male. Fastigiate (columnar) habit. - 'Aurea'
- 'Aurea', Bordeaux™ ('Condeaux'), 'Dare County' (syn. 'Virginia Dare'), 'Dwarf' (syn. 'Nana'), 'Folsom's Weeping' (syn. 'Gray's Weeping'), 'Jewel', 'Otis Miley', 'Pride of Houston', 'Stokes Dwarf' (syn. Schilling's Dwarf'), 'Taylor's Rudolph', 'Wiggins' (syn. 'Wiggins Yellow'), 'Will Fleming' (syn. 'Will's Upright')
- Tags:
- Cultivars / Varieties:
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- 'Aurea'
Yellow fruits - Bordeaux™ ('Condeaux')
Male, 4-5 ft tall x 5-6 ft wide. New growth purplish-red. - 'Dare County' (syn. 'Virginia Dare')
Female. Orange fruits. Upright habit.
'Dwarf' (syn. 'Nana')
- 'Jewel'
Female. Heavy fruit production. Open, mounding habit. - 'Otis Miley'
Orange-yellow fruits, small leaves - 'Pride of Houston'
Medium size, heavy fruit - 'Stokes Dwarf' (syn. Schilling's Dwarf')
male cultivar; more compact than 'Dwarf'
'Taylor's Rudolph'
- 'Wiggins' (syn. 'Wiggins Yellow')
Yellow fruits; upright spreading habit.
'Will Fleming' (syn. 'Will's Upright')
Compact dwarf, sterile female 'Folsom's Weeping' (syn. 'Gray's Weeping')
Heavy fruit production, pendulous. Female and male clones.
Female; dwarf habit.
Male. Fastigiate (columnar) habit. - 'Aurea'
- 'Aurea', Bordeaux™ ('Condeaux'), 'Dare County' (syn. 'Virginia Dare'), 'Dwarf' (syn. 'Nana'), 'Folsom's Weeping' (syn. 'Gray's Weeping'), 'Jewel', 'Otis Miley', 'Pride of Houston', 'Stokes Dwarf' (syn. Schilling's Dwarf'), 'Taylor's Rudolph', 'Wiggins' (syn. 'Wiggins Yellow'), 'Will Fleming' (syn. 'Will's Upright')
- Tags:
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Attributes:
- Genus:
- Ilex
- Species:
- vomitoria
- Family:
- Aquifoliaceae
- Uses (Ethnobotany):
- Native American Indians used the leaves to make a ceremonial emetic drink which, when consumed in large quantities, caused a cleansing now memorialized by the specific epithet. Also contains caffeine.
- Life Cycle:
- Woody
- Recommended Propagation Strategy:
- Seed
- Stem Cutting
- Country Or Region Of Origin:
- USA to Mexico
- Distribution:
- AL , AR , FL , GA , LA , MS , NC , OK , SC , TX , VA
- Fire Risk Rating:
- high flammability
- Wildlife Value:
- It is a larval host plant for the Henry's Elfin, and Holly Azure butterfly. Butterflies and other pollinators nectar at the blooms. The fruits are eaten by songbirds and small mammals. Also provides winter cover. Members of the genus Ilex support the following specialized bee: Colletes banksi.
- Play Value:
- Wildlife Food Source
- Particularly Resistant To (Insects/Diseases/Other Problems):
- This plant is highly resistant to damage from deer and salt tolerant. Resistant to Phytophthora root rot.
- Edibility:
- The young leaves may be picked, browned and dried in an oven, steeped in hot water and used to make Yaupon tea. It contains caffeine.
- Dimensions:
- Height: 10 ft. 0 in. - 20 ft. 6 in.
- Width: 8 ft. 0 in. - 12 ft. 0 in.
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Whole Plant Traits:
- Plant Type:
- Native Plant
- Perennial
- Poisonous
- Shrub
- Tree
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Broadleaf Evergreen
- Habit/Form:
- Erect
- Multi-stemmed
- Multi-trunked
- Rounded
- Growth Rate:
- Rapid
- Texture:
- Fine
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Cultural Conditions:
- Light:
- Deep shade (Less than 2 hours to no direct sunlight)
- Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day)
- Partial Shade (Direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)
- Soil Texture:
- Clay
- High Organic Matter
- Loam (Silt)
- Sand
- Soil pH:
- Acid (<6.0)
- Alkaline (>8.0)
- Neutral (6.0-8.0)
- Soil Drainage:
- Good Drainage
- Moist
- Occasional Flooding
- Occasionally Dry
- Occasionally Wet
- Available Space To Plant:
- 6-feet-12 feet
- 12-24 feet
- NC Region:
- Coastal
- Piedmont
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone:
- 7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b
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Fruit:
- Fruit Color:
- Red/Burgundy
- Fruit Value To Gardener:
- Showy
- Display/Harvest Time:
- Winter
- Fruit Type:
- Drupe
- Fruit Length:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Width:
- < 1 inch
- Fruit Description:
- 1/4 inch red drupes in clusters mature in fall and persist into winter.
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Flowers:
- Flower Color:
- Green
- White
- Flower Inflorescence:
- Insignificant
- Flower Value To Gardener:
- Fragrant
- Flower Bloom Time:
- Spring
- Flower Size:
- < 1 inch
- Flower Description:
- Small greenish-white flowers that appear on male and female plants in the spring (April). The flowers are fragrant but generally inconspicuous. They grow solitary or in pairs and are clustered on peduncles in leaf axils. Blooms from March to May.
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Leaves:
- Woody Plant Leaf Characteristics:
- Broadleaf Evergreen
- Leaf Color:
- Green
- Leaf Feel:
- Glossy
- Leathery
- Leaf Value To Gardener:
- Good Cut
- Long-lasting
- Leaf Type:
- Simple
- Leaf Arrangement:
- Alternate
- Leaf Shape:
- Elliptical
- Ovate
- Leaf Margin:
- Crenate
- Hairs Present:
- No
- Leaf Length:
- 1-3 inches
- Leaf Width:
- < 1 inch
- Leaf Description:
- 1.5-inch oval leaves are glossy green and leathery with toothed margins and rounded at base and tip.
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Bark:
- Bark Color:
- Light Gray
- White
- Surface/Attachment:
- Smooth
- Bark Description:
- Thin, smooth and light gray to almost white. As the tree ages, the bark might become a bit scaly.
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Stem:
- Stem Color:
- Gray/Silver
- Purple/Lavender
- Stem Is Aromatic:
- No
- Stem Description:
- Young stems are purple and turn gray to white-gray as they age.
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Landscape:
- Landscape Location:
- Coastal
- Container
- Naturalized Area
- Woodland
- Landscape Theme:
- Drought Tolerant Garden
- Native Garden
- Pollinator Garden
- Rain Garden
- Water Garden
- Winter Garden
- Design Feature:
- Barrier
- Border
- Hedge
- Screen/Privacy
- Security
- Small Tree
- Specimen
- Attracts:
- Butterflies
- Pollinators
- Small Mammals
- Songbirds
- Specialized Bees
- Resistance To Challenges:
- Deer
- Diseases
- Drought
- Salt
- Wet Soil
- Wind