Castle Howard Arboretum Trust - Furniture Makers Trees

Botanical name: Ilex aquifolium

Family: Aquifoliaceae

Common Name: Holly

Habitat and Distribution:

Native to British Isles, Europe and W. Asia, now much planted throughout Europe and N. America for shelter and ornament.

It thrives is a wide range of soil types - from calcerous to poor and acid. Locally, it can form almost pure woods, but more found in hedgerows and shaded positions in beech and oak woods.

Often used for hedging and pollarding.

Description:

Small evergreen tree/shrub. Height to 20 metres (65 ft) but more often much smaller.

The leaves are dark green and glossy and vary in shape from the wavy, sharply spined at lower levels to smooth almost ovate leaves above.

Tiny white flowers (0.8 cm), male and female on separate plants are borne in May. Females produce a bright, 4 seeded berry in November.

Many varieties exist with berries ranging from bright red to yellow.

The bark is smooth grey with some dark marks.

Timber:

A rare timber, holly trees seldom produce long straight boles. The creamy, ivory white wood is dense and hard with a fine, even grain.

Uses:

Formerly used for turning and carving, for stringing, inlays and marquetry when it is sometimes ebonised. It has also been used for engraving and making printing blocks.

It is a good firewood, even when green.

Trees were pollarded and used for winter feed especially in North and West of England.

The berries are poisonous but have been used as an emetic.

Location within the arboretum:

A pair of specimens are located on the Furniture Makers Walk, about half way down. These don’t appear to be doing well. A much happier, mature specimen can be found close to the turreted wall by Bracken Hill.