Mountain Holly
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| Ilex mucronata (L.) M.Powell et al. |
Mountain Holly or Catberry (Ilex mucronata) is a species of holly native to eastern North America, from Newfoundland west to Minnesota, and south to Maryland and West Virginia. It was formerly treated in its own monotypic genus as Nemopanthus mucronatus, but transferred to Ilex on molecular data (Powell et al. 2000).
It is a deciduous shrub growing to 3-4 m tall. The leaves are 3-6 cm long and 1.5-3 cm broad, with an entire or finely serrated margin and an acute apex. The flowers are inconspicuous, greenish-yellow. The fruit is a red berry containing three to five seeds.
The name Mountain Holly is also sometimes used for the related Mountain Winterberry (Ilex montana).
[edit] References
- Germplasm Resources Information Network: Ilex mucronata
- Powell, M., Savolainen, V., Cuénod, P., Manen, J. F., & Andrews, S. (2000). The mountain holly (Nemopanthus mucronatus: Aquifoliaceae) revisited with molecular data. Kew Bulletin 55: 341-347.
