Holly

Holly (Ilex) is a genus of about 400 species of flowering plants in the family Aquifoliaceae, and the only genus in that family. They are shrubs and trees from 2-25 m tall, with a wide distribution in Asia, Europe, north Africa, and North and South America. The leaves are simple, and can be either deciduous or evergreen depending on the species, and may be entire, finely toothed, or with widely-spaced, spine-tipped serrations. Hollies are mostly dioecious, with male and female flowers on different plants, with some exceptions. Pollination is mainly by bees and other insects. The fruit is a small berry, usually red when mature, with one to ten seeds.

Holly berries are mildly toxic and will cause vomiting and/or diarrhea when ingested by people. However they are extremely important food for numerous species of birds, and also are eaten by other wild animals. In the fall and early winter the berries are hard and apparently unpalatable. After being frozen or frosted several times, the berries soften, and become edible. During winter storms, birds often take refuge in hollies, which provide shelter, protection from predators (by the spiny leaves), and food. The flowers are sometimes eaten by the larva of the Double-striped Pug moth. Other Lepidoptera whose larvae feed on holly include Bucculatrix ilecella (which feeds exclusively on holly) and the Engrailed.

The species Ilex mucronata, formerly treated in a separate genus Nemopanthus, is now included in Ilex on molecular data (Powell et al. 2000).

Origin of Name

The origin of the word holly is the 11^th century Old High German hulis and Old English holegn both meaning holly. The word hulis originates from an even older proto-Germanic word khuli - a shortened derivation of the ancient Gaelic cuilieann both meaning holly. Today in modern Gaelic, holly is still known as cuileann.

The botanic name ilex was the original Latin name for the Holm oak, which has similar foliage to common holly, and is occasionally confused with it.

Uses

In many western cultures, holly is a traditional Christmas decoration, used especially in wreaths. Many of the hollies are highly decorative, and are widely used as ornamental plants in gardens and parks. The wood is heavy, hard and white; one traditional use is for chess pieces, with holly for the white pieces, and ebony for the black. Other uses include turnery, inlay work and as firewood. Looms in the 1800s used holly for the spinning rod. Because holly is dense and can be sanded very smooth, the rod was less likely than other woods to snag threads being used to make cloth.

Several American holly species are used to make various caffeine rich teas. The South American I. paraguariensis is used to make yerba mate, a common drink. I. guayusa is used both as a stimulant and as an admixture to the entheogenic tea ayahuasca; The leaves of I. guayusa have the highest caffeine content of any known plant. In North and Central America, I. vomitoria, Yaupon, was used by southeastern American Indians as a ceremonial stimulant and emetic known as the black drink. As the name suggests, the tea's purgative properties were one of its main uses, most often ritually. In China, the young leaf buds of I. kudingcha are processed in a method similar to green tea to make a tisane called Ku Ding tea.

References

• Germplasm Resources Information Network: Ilex species list
• Flora of China: Ilex species list
• Flora of Ecuador: Ilex
• Flora Europaea: Ilex species list
• Flora of Nepal: Ilex species list
• USDA Plants Profile: Ilex
• Powell, M., Savolainen, V., Cuénod, P., Manen, J. F., & Andrews, S. (2000). The mountain holly (Nemopanthus mucronatus: Aquifoliaceae) revisited with molecular data. Kew Bulletin 55: 341-347.

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