EXCEPTIONAL GROWTH RATE WITH YEAR ROUND VIEWING QUALITIES
FEATURES:
- Dark green, glossy evergreen foliage provides year long privacy and interest
- In fall and winter, brilliant red berries pop against the dark green leaves
- The berries are a favorite of songbirds
- Low maintenance and easy care
- Tolerant of drought, deer, heat, and air pollution
- Hand Selected, Fresh from the Grower
- Ships on our trucks because of the size of the tree - does not fit in a box
Photo Credit: ©Nova-Photo-Graphik GmbH® Nellie R. Stevens Holly
Growth Facts
- Hardiness Zone: 6-9
- Mature Height: 15-25' tall
- Mature Width: 8-15' wide
- Exposure: Full Sun/Part Shade
- Spacing: 8-12' apart
Nellie R. Stevens Holly
Bower & Branch Trees and Plants
Ilex 'Nellie R. Stevens'
Regular price
1(866) 873-3888
EXCEPTIONAL GROWTH RATE WITH YEAR ROUND VIEWING QUALITIES
FEATURES:
- Dark green, glossy evergreen foliage provides year long privacy and interest
- In fall and winter, brilliant red berries pop against the dark green leaves
- The berries are a favorite of songbirds
- Low maintenance and easy care
- Tolerant of drought, deer, heat, and air pollution
- Hand Selected, Fresh from the Grower
- Ships on our trucks because of the size of the tree - does not fit in a box
Photo Credit: ©Nova-Photo-Graphik GmbH® Nellie R. Stevens Holly
Growth Facts
- Hardiness Zone: 6-9
- Mature Height: 15-25' tall
- Mature Width: 8-15' wide
- Exposure: Full Sun/Part Shade
- Spacing: 8-12' apart
Why plant Nellie R. Stevens Holly?
Welcome to the world of hybrid Hollies! This cross between the Chinese Holly and the English Holly is all thanks to Nellie Robinson Stevens, who, let's say permanently borrowed a few pollinated berries from the U.S. Botanic Garden in Washington D.C. and grew the original Nellie R. Stevens Holly in her home garden. This cultivar of Holly provides a conical shape growing to heights of 15-25’ tall and widths of up to 8-15’, visually reminding us of a Christmas tree. Maintaining its evergreen status for year round viewing, the Nellie R. Stevens Holly produces small white blooms in spring that are slightly fragrant and stand out amongst the dark glossy green foliage. These blooms welcome bees and other pollinators to your property, which jumpstarts the fruiting process. These blooms are not the only pop of color the Nellie R. Stevens offers. As the seasons progress, we are delighted with bright red fruits that, like the blooms, stand out against the dark green foliage, giving this tree a festive look for the cooler seasons. While able to produce berries on its own, this Holly is berry productive (see what we did there!?) when paired with a male counterpart. These berries are not suitable for human consumption but the birds go crazy for them, feasting through the winter months and providing you with some lovely company to gaze upon!
How to use Nellie R. Stevens Holly in the landscape?
This evergreen has a few qualities worth mentioning, starting with the vigorous growth rate of almost 3’ a year. This growth rate matches that of Birch, Willows, and even Green Giants. The Nellie R. Stevens offers tolerance to drought, air pollution, as well as heat, allowing this tree to thrive almost anywhere - even in the south during summers where other Hollies tend to suffer! Like most Hollies, the Nellie R. Stevens also produces berries lasting through the winter months. However, this Holly is capable of berry production on its own but becomes a master producer when paired with a male counterpart for pollination. When considering locations for the Nellie R. Stevens, try planting this Holly as a specimen to be admired, or utilize the dense foliage for a hedge or barrier. This tree also works well when utilized as a foundation planting, accenting the corners of your home and bringing the views of feasting birds right to your window!
Planting Zones
Hardiness Zone: 6-9
How To Plant Nellie R. Stevens Holly
Looking to give a Nellie R. Stevens Holly a forever home? AWESOME! We have just a few tips to help you get on your way! The Nellie R. Stevens Holly is capable of living in locations that offer full sun down to partial shade. Adaptable to most soil types, while living its best life in well draining slightly acidic soils, we can add soils that are slightly alkaline, dry sandy types, heavy clay, and pretty much any other type of soil to the list of 'acceptable' soils. Even though this Holly grows rapidly, the maintenance for this tree is simple, requiring pruning only as you see fit to maintain your desired shape.
How To Water
Watering your Nellie R. Stevens Holly is fairly simple. When first planted, we recommend watering at least twice a week, keeping the soil moist but not soggy. Do this until the tree becomes established. Nellie R. Stevens Hollies do provide drought tolerance when established, however we advise you keep an eye on local weather and water accordingly during periods of inclement weather.
How To Fertilize
At the time of planting, we recommend adding our Bower & Branch Elements Starter Plant Food to the planting site to help with the growth and establishment of your Nellie R. Stevens Holly. If you plant your Holly in the spring, you will want to apply fertilizer again in fall and keep that same schedule until the plant is established. If you planted in the fall, add fertilizer the following spring to promote new and healthy growth from your Nellie R. Stevens Holly.
How To Prune
After planting your Nellie R. Stevens Holly, it will soon be time to consider maintenance. This process can take place in either early spring or mid fall. Simply prune new growth to maintain the shape you desire. With the Nellie R. Stevens Holly there is no need to worry if you accidentally prune a little too far back, this Holly is capable of growing back from any cut making maintenance a breeze.
How Does Shipping Work?
Bower & Branch Trees, the real BIG trees, don’t fit in a box! Our big trees, sizes XL and bigger, require expert delivery and care, that means our extra-large trees are shipped on Bower & Branch trucks. We are the only ones who know how to ship our big and bigger trees and plants with tender loving care. We deliver your trees and plants directly to you. Ask Bower & Branch about planting services – we'd be happy to assist in installation.
*For Big trees and Shrubs, Size XL and bigger: Review our Seasonal Shipping Timelines and Policy here.
Your trees and plants are grown across the United States at various Bower & Branch Growers. Depending on your location, your plant orders may be shipped from various locations. Please expect orders with multiple items to be delivered over a number of days as a result. Orders made up of numerous items or selections will not arrive at your home on the same day.
Shipping Delays:
From time to time, Bower & Branch Growers may determine to delay order shipment based on various factors for plant health. Weather in your region, as well as, where your plants are grown, is always considered when shipping. Extreme weather conditions may delay some or all of your order. Bower & Branch allows our Growers to make final shipping decisions based solely to benefit your trees and plants’ health and success.
How Does Sizing Work?
The size of our trees have nothing to do with the container size like you may find elsewhere–big doesn't mean just height - it’s also vigor, age, and overall health. Other online retailers are going to tell you that a plant is a seven gallon, that means nothing to your tree or plant (or you.)
Our trees for sale online are graded on large, x-large, and even bigger sizes. This is because our trees are sized by their age—the higher the letter, the more mature the tree. The age determines the trees’ overall height, size of the trunk and the overall branch density.
All of these characteristics are what you should be looking for when choosing a tree for immediate impact and instant curb appeal. Our extra-large tree and plant sizes are sure to wow you and your neighbors!
See the size guides below.
Our Guarantees
3-YEAR-TREE GUARANTEE:
Bower & Branch offers a Three-Year Tree Guarantee on all of our trees, sizes X-Large and up. Only the finest and the most experienced growers are awarded the opportunity to grow for Bower & Branch, so we offer the best guarantee available.
If your tree(s) should fail for any reason during the three-year guarantee period, you will receive an online gift card in the amount that you originally spent on the tree.* You can then use this online gift card for any Bower & Branch Purchase.
* Bower & Branch provides online gift cards in the amount of the original purchase price of the tree(s). The amount does not include any additional costs such as delivery, planting, tax, or any other products or services. Online gift cards can be applied towards any Bower & Branch purchase on BowerandBranch.com and have no expiration dates. Bower & Branch does not guarantee tree replacement or availability of any desired product at any time. Cash refunds are not offered. Bower & Branch requires that all original tags and receipts are present when a guarantee request is initiated. The Bower & Branch Three-Year Guarantee only applies to plant material that has been planted in the ground. Container plantings are NOT covered.
At Bower & Branch, we do our best to honor all guarantee fulfillment requests to ensure customer satisfaction. However, we reserve the right to refuse the request if the required guarantee steps were not satisfied. Bower & Branch also reserves the right to deny any guarantee fulfillment request that is made as a result of animal damage, problems with plant hardiness and zone issues, or acts of nature (snow storms, hurricanes, and similar).
Reach out to a Plant Whisperer with any questions:
- Email: plantwhisperers@bowerandbranch.com
- Phone: 866-873-3888
- Or via Online Chat
