Ilex aquifolium 'Handsworth New Silver' 12Ltr pot

Ilex aquifolium 'Handsworth New Silver' – Holly 'Handsworth New Silver' – 12 Litre Pot

'Handsworth New Silver' is one of the most striking variegated hollies, combining handsome foliage with a generous winter display. Its long, spiny leaves are dark green mottled with grey and broadly edged in creamy-white, carried on attractive purple young shoots that add a subtle contrast. This female form follows its small white late-spring flowers with bright red berries, which glow against the silvery foliage through autumn and winter.

Holder of the RHS Award of Garden Merit, it forms a dense, compact shape, making it an excellent specimen for smaller gardens, a bright evergreen hedge, or a neat piece of topiary. Fully hardy (RHS H6), it grows in chalk, clay, loam or sand of any pH, in moist but well-drained or free-draining soil, and copes with both exposed and sheltered sites, including coastal gardens. It is happy in sun or partial shade, though full sun gives the best variegation. Its flowers are valued by pollinators and the berries feed birds in winter; they are ornamental only and should not be eaten by people or pets, and gloves are advisable when handling the spiny leaves. A male holly nearby will help ensure a good crop of berries.

Plant from autumn to spring and water well through the first year. Little pruning is needed beyond removing any misplaced or all-green shoots, while hedges and topiary can be trimmed in early spring. Growth is slow and steady, eventually reaching 4–8m in height with a spread of 2.5–4m if left unclipped.

Each plant is hand-selected before dispatch.