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Sarvis Holly

Ilex amelanchier

Also called serviceberry holly.

A rare deciduous holly of southern swamps and stream banks, with soft, dull leaves and velvety rose-red berries that last into spring.

RareWildlife valueTolerates wet soilWinter interest

Type: Small tree
Mature height: 10–30 ft
USDA zones: 7–10
Growth rate: Slow
Sun: Part
Soil moisture: Average, Wet
Grows wild in: Stream banks, floodplain forests, swamps and wet flats
Native range: 7 states, north to North Carolina, south to Florida and west to Louisiana
List all 7
Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina and South Carolina
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Sarvis holly is a deciduous holly of the southern Coastal Plain, from southeastern North Carolina to the Florida Panhandle and Louisiana. It grows along blackwater rivers, in floodplain swamps, on seepy stream banks and around sandhill ponds. Its dull, soft-haired leaves and velvety rose-red berries set it apart from other hollies, and its name likens it to the serviceberries. Florida lists it as threatened, and NatureServe ranks it imperiled in four of its seven states. Plant it in a rain garden or at the wet edge of a pond, where the fruit hangs on through winter.

Size, growth and what to expect

Sarvis holly grows slowly, about a foot a year in our growth estimator. It makes a large shrub or small tree, usually under 15 feet but up to 30, and 10 to 15 feet wide. Its dull green leaves, up to 4 inches long, are soft and densely hairy beneath, and the smooth bark is grayish brown.

Small, fragrant, greenish-white flowers open in April and May in clusters along the twigs. On female trees, pea-sized berries ripen a dull, velvety rose red from late summer into fall, and they can last into the next spring. Birds eat them, and bees visit the flowers, including one that specializes in hollies.

It grows wild on the Coastal Plain from southeastern North Carolina to the Florida Panhandle and west to Louisiana. Its home is blackwater river floodplains, seepy stream banks, sandy swamps, the edges of sandhill ponds and clay-based Carolina bays. Forestry and the ditching, draining or damming of its wetlands threaten it.

How to grow Sarvis Holly

Sarvis holly grows best in part shade, in a moist to wet, acid soil of sand, loam or clay. It takes flooding well and has some tolerance for drought. Plant it 15 feet from a wall and 15 feet from overhead wires, since some reach 30 feet. Set plants 10 feet apart.

Saplings ship bare-root or potted. Plant them dormant, from leaf fall until bud swell, in a hole wider than the roots and no deeper. Set the root flare at the soil line, put the native soil back in, and keep the mulch clear of the stems. Holly seed is slow to sprout. Sow cleaned seed outdoors in fall, a quarter inch deep under mulch, and expect seedlings in the second or third spring. For a spring sowing, keep it damp at room temperature for one to two months and then in the refrigerator for two to three months.

Water weekly through the first two summers unless the ground stays wet. It flowers on the season's new growth, so shape it in late winter if it needs pruning.

Trees are male or female, and only females bear the red fruit, so plant three or more seedlings for a male and a female. It is slow to reach maturity but long-lived once established. No disease or insect pest is known to trouble it. Eating the berries can make a person mildly ill.

Heights and zones are typical ranges for the species in cultivation; local conditions and seed source shift them.

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