Ilex verticillata seed
LATIN NAME: Ilex verticillata
COMMON NAME: Winterberry
The winterberry is a handsome, deciduous holly of the wet ground, and its fine, toothed, dark-green leaves and its dense, brilliant, glossy, scarlet-red clusters of the small round berries have made it one of the most striking of the winter shrubs. It grows as a deciduous shrub, reaching up to three metres or more, with the upright, branching stems bearing the alternate, oval, pointed, finely toothed, dark-green leaves and, through the late spring, the small, greenish-white flowers in the leaf axils, followed by the dense, brilliant, glossy, scarlet-red clusters of the many small, round berries that hold on the bare stems through the winter. It is a species of the flowering shrub in the holly family, and it is native to the wet ground of the eastern North America, while it is grown for its brilliant winter berries, and it is known as the winterberry.
The winterberry belongs to the holly family, Aquifoliaceae, and it is a species of the deciduous shrub, native to the wet ground of the eastern North America, while it is grown for its brilliant winter berries, and it is known as the winterberry. It is prized for its dense, brilliant, glossy, scarlet-red clusters of the small round berries.
Scientific Research & Plant Biotechnology
The winterberry has a real and distinguished place in the research. It has been studied in the horticulture, since its dense, brilliant, glossy, scarlet-red clusters of the small round berries, holding on the bare stems through the winter, have made it one of the most striking of the winter shrubs, and researchers have examined its growth, its fruiting and its many fine cultivars, while its fine, winter display has drawn attention in the international horticultural press as a shrub of the winter garden. The plant has also been studied in the botany and the ecology, since it is a native of the wet ground of the eastern North America, and its relationships, its distribution and its role in the wild have been examined, while the ecology of the wetland shrubs has been of continuing interest, and its dense, brilliant berries have been of interest to the birds and the gardeners. The species has also been studied in the food science and the ecology of the birds, since the brilliant, scarlet berries are a fine and important food of the winter birds, and researchers have examined the berries and their value, while the study of the winter food of the birds has been of continuing interest, and the berries are not for the human table. For a shrub of such brilliant winter fruit, the winterberry has a rich and continuing record of study.
Ecological & Economic Value & Wide Applications
Ecologically, the winterberry is a generous shrub of the garden. Its small, greenish-white flowers feed the bees and the insects, and its dense, brilliant, scarlet-red clusters of the berries feed the winter birds, while its fine, leafy crown gives a fine cover and a shelter to the birds.
Its economic value is real. The winterberry is prized for its dense, brilliant, scarlet-red clusters of the berries, and its beauty has drawn attention in the international horticultural press as a shrub of the winter garden, while its fine, bright, bare-stemmed display has made it a valued shrub of the winter garden and the holiday arrangement. For a grower, the winterberry is a rewarding and easy shrub, and for a gardener it brings a dense, brilliant, scarlet-berried shrub to the winter garden. The seeds are easy to start — give them a period of cold, damp storage in the fridge, then sow them just below the surface of a pot of moist, free-draining, acidic soil, keep them gently watered, and they’ll be sprouting steadily, growing on into a brilliant, scarlet-berried shrub.
NAME: Winterberry
OTHER COMMON NAMES: Winterberry Holly / Coralberry / Michigan Holly / Canada Holly / Candian Holly / Fever Bush / Black Alder / False Alder / Common Winterberry
SCIENTIFIC NAME: Ilex Verticillata syn. var. Cyclophylla, var. Padifolia, var. Fastigiata, & var. Tenuifolia / Ilex Bronxensis / Ilex Fastigiata
COLOR: White Flowers / Red Berries
PLANT SEEDS: Seed requires warm stratification followed cold stratification, or they can be sown outside in spring for germination the following spring.
BLOOM TIME: Flowers – May to July / Berries – Late Summer to Fall through Winter
HARDINESS ZONE: 3 – 9
PLANT HEIGHT: 6 – 10′ (Up to 16′)
PLANT SPACING: 6 – 12′
LIGHT REQUIREMENTS: Sun – Part Shade
SOIL & WATER PREFERENCES: Average – Moist