Hollies - Berries or no Berries

Many factors can affect successful fruit bearing.

Generally, if a plant fails to bear berries for several years, you need to look at your pruning practices. If incorrect pruning is eliminated as a reason, then you need to try to determine the sex of your plant.

Gardeners are often puzzled as to why their holly plants do not bear berries. To gain an understanding why this happens requires knowledge of a simple fact.

Hollies are what is botanically described as dioecious (having male and female flowers, borne on separate plants). The plants are either male or female. The female will produce fruit and only then if a male plant is close enough to pollinate. Bees or other insects play a role in pollination.

Female plants bear fruit…

Generally, all named varieties of hollies grown for fruit are female plants. Seed from these varieties will produce both male and female plants with the females only bearing fruit. Also, they may or may not resemble the mother plant. There are a number of reasons for hollies failing to bear fruit.

Some other reasons to consider…

• A male plant will not bear fruit even though it flowers
• Most female plants will flower but will not bear fruit unless there is a male planted nearby.
• Also, late frost or a freeze may kill young flower buds or fruit. This often occurs in Chinese Holly because they begin to flower in late winter or early spring
• Holly plants may drop their fruit during the summer if prolonged dry weather occurs.
• A major reason for failure to bear fruit is that plants have been sheared of last season's growth of stems. The flowers are produced in late winter or early spring or stems that grew last summer.

Female and male flowers are quite small but you can determine gender. Male flowers will have a number of small stamen that bear pollen. Female flowers will only have a structure in the center of the bloom. This will be the pistil which is essential for fruit development. After determining that your plant is female, then look around your grounds or your neighbors' for male plants.

It is thought that Burford Holly will bear fruit without pollination.

For more information on hollies, contact your local County Extension Office.