Ilex Aquifolium ‘Handsworth New Silver’

Spiny, mid-green leaves with creamy margins on dark purple stems and bright red berries from autumn to winter. This handsome, variegated holly copes well with pollution and salt-laden air. Dense and columnar in shape, it’s an ideal, evergreen specimen tree for a small, sunny garden with fertile, moist, well-drained soil. – Position: full sun or partial shade – Soil: moist, well-drained, moderately fertile, humus-rich soil – Rate of growth: slow-growing – Flowering period: May and June – Flower colour: white – Other features: the berries may cause a mild stomach upset if ingested; to guarantee berries it’s necessary to plant a male holly nearby; stems of holly are ideal for floral arrangements – Hardiness: fully hardy

– Garden care: Plants grown as free-standing specimens require minimal pruning – remove diseased or misplaced branches in spring. Trim plants grown as formal hedges in late summer. After pruning apply a generous 5-7cm (2-3in) mulch of well-rotted compost or manure around the base of the plant – Goes well with:Griselina littoralis, Pittosporum tenuifolium ‘Purpureum’, Taxus baccata, Euonymus fortunei ‘Emerald Gaiety’, Viburnum tinus ‘Eve Price’, Galanthus nivalis