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The 2024 Garden Year

January 19, 2024 January Our year started with snow, ice and frigid temperatures in mid-January. Our temperatures stayed below freezing for almost a week. I think it was the most consistent cold that we've experienced since moving here. Fortunately, it was a dry snow so there wasn't too much damage. Once again, we almost lost the azara and I'm afraid there would have been some breakage if I had not kept knocking the ice off. February 14, 2024 February In past years, it seems that inclement weather seems to hit around Michael's birthday in mid-February. After the January snow and ice, this month was actually quite tame. Nothing exciting to report - mostly birdwatching . Early flowers like hellebores, cyclamen and crocus begin to bloom in mid month. March 3, 2024 March I got into a walking routine which I'm happy to report I am continuing this year. You get to the point where you feel guilty if you miss a day. I do miss days occasionally but I'm learning that ...
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Possumhaw


It may have a funny name but Possumhaw (Ilex decidua) is a dazzling addition to the winter garden.

A deciduous holly, the dark green leaves turn bright yellow in the fall and shed before brilliant red-orange berries appear in November or December. The berries persist throughout winter. They seem to be unappetizing to birds but I read that birds like them after they have frozen and thawed. Possums too are said to like the berries, so maybe that is where the name comes in.

It may be a good thing if birds don't like to eat the Possumhaw berries because they do wonders to enhance a bleak grey garden. Only the female plants produce the berries and they must be pollinated. I only have one plant so I suspect that it is pollinated by Ilex opaca (American Holly) which reside on the opposide end of our property.

The berries of possumhaw are toxic if ingested in large quantities to both humans and animals. However, animals do not like the taste of the plant and they would probably not be interested in eating it.

Possumhaw can grow up to 20 feet tall and 10 feet wide. This makes me nervous as I planted this one in the perennial/shrub border where space is at a minimum. I've seen photos of them limbed up and resembling standards (they are often referred to as trees). I've had this one planted for at least three years and growth appears to be very slow.

They are easy to grow and prefer moist, acidic soil but they tolerate alkaline soils equally well. They are also tolerant of wet conditions. There are many varieties available. I want to say that this particular variety is "Warren's Red" but I'm not certain about that.

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  1. GailJanuary 21, 2009 at 6:11 PM

    I love the name...I wonder what the history is...usually something quite colorful! It's a beautiful shrub/tree Phillip...it would brighten up the GOBN...thank you for the idea! Gail

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  2. AnonymousJanuary 21, 2009 at 6:18 PM

    I love these hollies. The berries almost seem translucent and so unlike the other hollies' berries. They grow wild around us, and really brighten up the winter landscape.

    Jan
    Always Growing

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  3. UnknownJanuary 21, 2009 at 6:28 PM

    We don't have this species, but we have Ilex verticillata, (Canada Holly or Winterberry), another deciduous one, and a star of winter gardens and thickets. Love it love it love it!

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  4. Bren HaasJanuary 21, 2009 at 8:40 PM

    This is a wonderful accessory for any winter garden. I am going to look if they will surviving in zone 5. I won't hold my breath on that. Maybe something to add to the greenhouse.

    Thank you for sharing this. Please stop by my garden sometime.

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  5. Chandramouli SJanuary 21, 2009 at 10:35 PM

    The name does pique interest and the tree definitely seems to be a great addition amidst the white and gray winter!

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  6. JanJanuary 22, 2009 at 3:41 AM

    It is very nice, Phillip. It sways and flows like it's being touched by a gentle breeze:) I have a buddleia (butterfly bush) that flows like this, although it's not producing gorgeous berries! In fact, there's nothing on it at the moment. Makes me wish I had you Possumhaw right now:)
    I cut my bush back every year so it will 'fit' in the garden area that i've planted it in--otherwise it would grow taller & take over the area! You could always keep yours trimmed short if it suddenly has a growth spurt!!

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  7. Lisa at GreenbowJanuary 22, 2009 at 5:02 AM

    This holly is a beauty in winter. I love the name too. I wonder if possums would come and eat the berries in the nursery where it was developed, hence the name??

    I have a diciduous holly in the front garden that only gets 4' tall and it is gorgeous too. I have the male around the corner of the house. They get along quite well like this becasue the girls are full of berries. The mockingbird and cardinals fuss about who gets dibs on the berries in early spring. Otherwise the berries are untouched. Too bad I forget which variety it is.

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  8. F CameronJanuary 22, 2009 at 5:41 AM

    The holly is really pretty, especially for winter interest. I just tried to find the origin of the name, because it sounds like a Native American name. The only thing that I found is that the berries were used for medicinal purposes.

    Educational!

    Cameron

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  9. Phillip OliverJanuary 22, 2009 at 6:43 AM

    Bren, I think the possumhaw may not be as hardy but you might be able to use the winterberry holly instead.

    Lisa, thanks for bringing this up. I went back and added that to my post. I had read that possums like them and I forgot to say that.

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  10. sweetbayJanuary 22, 2009 at 8:55 AM

    We have a lot of those growing wild here, both in the general area (the Neuse River is close by) and on our farm. They are absolutely brilliant in the winter. I love the berries. They are so bright they look as though they have been lacquered.

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  11. Roses and LilacsJanuary 22, 2009 at 9:35 AM

    Another tree I wish I could grow here. I love the name. Has a very folksy sound. Say what you will about botanical names. I love the romance of the old common names.
    Marnie

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  12. AnonymousJanuary 22, 2009 at 12:21 PM

    Hi Phillip, what a beauty, and next to the red tuteur makes a fabulous color echo. Those american hollies are good for pollinating other hollies. I have a blue princess with no prince and she berries faithfully each year. I do think you should limb it up, that would look so pretty and leave you more room underneath for planting. Good idea!
    Frances

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  13. AnonymousJanuary 22, 2009 at 11:30 PM

    How brilliant of you to paint the tuteur next to it an echoing red.

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  14. Philip BewleyJanuary 23, 2009 at 4:34 PM

    Hi,
    This does have beautiful berries, and 20 by 10 is quite big!

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  15. AnonymousJanuary 23, 2009 at 7:40 PM

    Phillip, where did you buy this one? Glen found a large one just behind our house in the woods. I never knew we had a native like that...I was awestruck. They sound like a pain to propagate so I may just buy one. How are you making it this winter? I'm about to climb the walls. LOL

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  16. Phillip OliverJanuary 23, 2009 at 8:48 PM

    Jennifer, I think I bought this one at Grassland before they went out of business. I read that they are difficult to propagate. If you can't find one locally, you might be able to get it from ForestFarm (a great online nursery!)

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  17. AnonymousJanuary 24, 2009 at 12:40 AM

    I agree that Possumhaw is a hilarious name. It does sound Native American like Cameron said. I laughed at your nervousness about planting it in the bed. I have some Oso Easy roses by PW right now taking over my beds. They need to be potted up and gracefully wander to and fro.

    Possumhaw reminds me of Pyracantha. Hate those thorns of Pyracantha though. My grand dog ate the Pyracantha berries one time. I panicked and called the poison control center. I told them my dog was having a fit to eat those berries.

    They laughed and told me it makes animals drunk. Birds fly erratic and comical paths after dining on them. And my grand dog got drunk. She belched and passed gas in her drunken stupor. She slept for hours which is very unlike a puppy bird dog.

    I like your possumhaw and its colorful addition.

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  18. AnonymousJanuary 25, 2009 at 7:33 AM

    HAPPY BIRTHDAY, Phillip. Hope you have a good one today!

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  19. JonJanuary 25, 2009 at 12:24 PM

    Happy Birthday, Phillip, with best wishes for many more happy returns.

    Jon at Mississippi Garden

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  20. Phillip OliverJanuary 26, 2009 at 6:37 AM

    Thanks for the birthday wishes! :)

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  21. Dig, Grow, Compost, BlogJanuary 26, 2009 at 7:16 PM

    I've always loved Possumhaw. I've usually only seen them in the wild though and in those cases, they never got as big as yours might. Usually they were a nice 6 ft or so. Yours looks great.

    I couldn't find possumhaw here so last spring I bought one in Texas and trekked it back here. Unfortunately I managed to kill it by forgetting to water it during a rather dry and very hot time. That truly bummed me out! Maybe next year.

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  22. Annie in AustinJanuary 27, 2009 at 6:27 PM

    Your possumhaw hollies look wonderful, Phillip! I've seen them growing wild around Austin, and Austin's Tom Spencer of Soul of the Garden" loves them so much his garden is named "Possumhaw Hollow".

    Because Elizabeth Lawrence talks of a completely different shrub called "Possumhaw Viburnum" I used that name to search. Google Books turned up a page in the Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico which says the name possum can mean false, and that possumhaw means they look like edible Haw viburnum.
    But that doesn't answer the question of whether possumhaw HOLLY was named because it looked like the edible possumhaw viburnum.

    (What a rattle of a comment! It's 33 degrees out and the wind is making me jittery. Looking up your lovely tree was a nice distraction!)

    Annie at the Transplantable Rose

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