Holly and mistletoe
One of the biggest fears you may have when caring for plants is pruning. Many times we tend to let the plant or tree grow at its own free will for fear that we will cut what we should not. However, it is a necessary maintenance activity. And in the case of some plants, it is even more important than you think, as is the case with pruning holly.
A holly tree can be considered a tree or a shrub. It all depends on how it is formed. As for pruning, it is one of the plants that best supports them, even when you overdo it, although it is not recommended that this happens.
In addition, you have to keep in mind that pruning a holly is done for a specific purpose, such as the growth of the plant, helping it to remove branches, leaves and flowers that are bad and cleaning it up. That is why it is said that there are different types of pruning for this one.
The next type of holly pruning is flowering pruning. This is actually the pruning itself, and is done in late winter and early spring, as the objective is to clean the plant and prepare it for the next growth.
How to care for potted mistletoe
– Watering: during the summer months, its water needs are greater, so it is recommended to water it almost daily. Meanwhile, in winter, space watering to one or two a week, depending on the humidity of the area where you live. Avoid letting the water dry out between waterings, always avoiding waterlogging.
Believe it or not, holly is a plant that also does very well in pots. In addition, you can move it to a covered area to protect it from frost. However, do not bring it indoors, as it will eventually drop its leaves and die.
If you grow holly in pots, also ensure good drainage by placing stones at the bottom of the pot to prevent water from accumulating. Also, in pots it is necessary to increase the weekly waterings, increasing to 3 or 4 weekly in summer and one or two a week.
Step 1. Select several berries and place them in a jar with silica sand or river sand to prevent them from drying out completely. Then put the jar in the refrigerator for a couple of months to give the seeds the cold they will need later to germinate.
How to prune a mistletoe
Female specimens produce a slightly fleshy fruit (drupe), globose/ellipsoidal centimetric, green at first and then bright red or bright yellow, which ripens very late – around October or November – and remains on the tree for a long time, often throughout the winter. It contains in its interior four or five seeds (pyrenes).
The holly was already known to Aristotle. He called it “paliuro” in his texts.[8] Traditional natural medicine has used holly since ancient times. Its properties derive from the presence in its leaves of ilicin (ilixanthin), caffeic acid, dextrose, gum, wax and other substances in smaller quantities.[9] The bark of the trunk and the bark of the trunk and the bark of the trunk are used as a natural remedy.
The bark of the trunk and branches contains ilicene hydrocarbon, fatty acids, pectin and viscine. From this bark, cooked and fermented by burial, is obtained garter for hunting birds. The use of this hunting art is very ancient. The obtaining of holly garter can be found described in plant books of the 18th century.[10] The use of holly for hunting birds is very old.
Types of holly trees
To finish with this holly care guide, it is necessary to comment some aspects about the most common pests and diseases of Ilex aquifolium, which are the following:It is necessary to recognize what type of pest there is in order to find the best product or home remedy to combat pests that is specific for that species. If you have doubts about the species, take a sample and take it to the specialist in the store, who will be able to help you.They are also prone to suffer other problems such as the following, in case they are potted and somewhat neglected or poorly located:If it becomes very dark, wrinkled and soft you will have to help it to remove water from the pot, you can even transplant it by placing new soil without watering it in case the waterlogging is severe. On the contrary, if it is yellowish, brown and parched, it needs to be moved to a place where it does not get so much sun and wind, in addition to direct watering in the soil.