Biology:Ilex crenata
| Ilex crenata | |
|---|---|
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Scientific classification 
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| Kingdom: | Plantae |
| Clade: | Tracheophytes |
| Clade: | Angiosperms |
| Clade: | Eudicots |
| Clade: | Asterids |
| Order: | Aquifoliales |
| Family: | Aquifoliaceae |
| Genus: | Ilex |
| Species: | I. crenata
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| Binomial name | |
| Ilex crenata | |
Ilex crenata, also known as Japanese holly or box-leaved holly, is a species of flowering plant in the family Aquifoliaceae, native to East and Southeast Asia.[1]
Distribution and habitat
I. crenata is native to temperate and subtropical parts of eastern China (including Hainan), Japan, Korea, Taiwan, the Himalayas (Nepal, India, Tibet), Myanmar, Vietnam and Sakhalin, Russia.[2]
Description
It is an evergreen shrub growing to a height of 3–4 m (rarely 10 m) tall, with a trunk diameter up to 20 cm. The leaves are glossy dark green, small, 10–30 mm long and 10–17 mm broad, with a crenate (wavy) margin, sometimes spiny. The plants are dioecious (having separate male and female plants), with white, four-lobed flowers. The fruit is a black drupe (stone fruit) 5 mm diameter, containing four seeds. It grows well in acidic soil, between a pH of 3.8 and 6.0.[3][4][5]
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close-up of flowers
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close-up of drupes
Cultivation
Ilex crenata is grown as an ornamental plant for its dense evergreen foliage, and is a popular plant among bonsai enthusiasts and suburban property developers alike.[6] It is superficially similar in appearance to boxwood (box), and is often used in similar situations, such as low hedging; but it can readily be distinguished from boxwood by its alternate, not opposite, leaf arrangement.[7]
Numerous cultivars have been selected, including plants with the leaves variegated (e.g. 'Golden Gem', 'Shiro-Fukurin'), dark green (e.g. 'Green Lustre'), or greyish-green (e.g. 'Bad Zwischenahn'); with yellow fruit (e.g. 'Ivory Hall'); and with an erect habit (e.g. 'Chesapeake' and 'Sky Pencil'), and spreading (e.g. 'Green Island', 'Hetzii'), or dwarf (e.g. 'Mariesii', 'Stokes').[5][8] The cultivars 'Golden Gem'[9] and ‘Fastigiata’ (Fastigiata Group)[10] have gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.[11]
References
- ↑ {{citation | mode = cs1 | title = Ilex crenata | work = Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN) | url = | publisher = [[Organization:Agricultural Research ServAgricultural Research Service (ARS), United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) | access-date = 2018-01-12 }}
- ↑ "Ilex crenata Thunb. Plants of the World Online. Kew Science" (in en). https://powo.science.kew.org/taxon/urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:83193-1.
- ↑ Osaka hundred trees: Ilex crenata (in Japanese; google translation)
- ↑ Okayama Science University: Ilex crenata (in Japanese; google translation)
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Huxley, A., ed. (1992). New RHS Dictionary of Gardening. Macmillan ISBN 0-333-47494-5.
- ↑ "Japanese Holly Bonsai". BonsaiDojo.net. 31 January 2014. https://www.bonsaidojo.net/ilex-crenata-bonsai/.
- ↑ "Japanese Holly: A Subtle Gem" (in en-US). 2018-01-04. https://www.seattlejapanesegarden.org/blog/2017/12/13/the-unobtrusive-beauty-of-japanese-holly.
- ↑ "Ilex crenata (Fastigiata Group) 'Sky Pencil' (f)". The Royal Horticultural Society. 2025. https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/125665/ilex-crenata-(fastigiata-group)-sky-pencil-(f)/details.
- ↑ "RHS Plant Selector". Royal Horticultural Society. http://apps.rhs.org.uk/plantselector/plant?plantid=1022.
- ↑ "RHS Plantfinder - Ilex crenata 'Fastigiata'". https://www.rhs.org.uk/Plants/90905/i-Ilex-crenata-i-(Fastigata-Group)-Fastigiata-(f)/Details.
- ↑ "AGM Plants - Ornamental". Royal Horticultural Society. July 2017. p. 52. https://www.rhs.org.uk/plants/pdfs/agm-lists/agm-ornamentals.pdf.
Wikidata ☰ Q1328685 entry
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