
THREE UNIQUE HOLLIES... More Triumphs 
Kathleen Meserve is a city born and bred woman who 
became fascinated with growing things when she and her hus- 
band and their children moved to an old colonial home on a 
farm on Long Island in 1946. 
She started with a vegetable garden, growing all the fresh 
foods she had not been able to get for her family during the 
war. Soon she was raising pigs and other animals. In fact, in 
1948 almost no money at all was spent on meats, vegetables or 
dairy foods by the Meserve family. All of it was produced at 
home. 
It was not long before Mrs. Meserve became aware that her 
surroundings had a special beauty in addition to the practical- 
ity of producing food. In particular, the native American holly, 
Ilex opaca, which grew naturally and added tremendous winter 
interest to the deciduous woodlands, caught her interest. 
An intense person with a keen eye and great imagination, 
Mrs. Meserve researched the genus Ilex (Holly) and visited 
many arboreta, nurseries and estates on Long Island to begin a 
wide and varied holly collection. A natural outgrowth of this 
interest was hybridizing. 
Mrs. Meserve made her first crosses in the early 50’s, devel- 
oping many varied types and forms of hollies. Then she discov- 
ered the much more luxuriant English holly, Ilex aquifolium. 
However, as with many of us, she soon found it did not have 
the hardiness to take windy winters or hot sultry summers. At 
that, her search began for a ruggedly hardy holly to mate with 
the Aquifolium, in order to bring forth an offspring similar to 
Christmas holly but hardy enough to be grown throughout the 
northern states. 
She found what she felt might be the answer in Ilex rugosa, 
BLUE PRINCESS NEW 
Al 
a small, prostrate shrub native to the Sakhalin Island north of 
Japan. Through the Arnold Arboretum she obtained a few 
seeds from which she grew her own plants of Ilex rugosa to 
cross with Ilex aquifolium. 
After years of evaluation, selection and further crossing, 
Mrs. Meserve selected a few of her hybrids for their ability to 
withstand unprotected the bitterest of winter winds and tem- 
peratures. Of almost equal importance was their vigorous and 
attractive growth, their glossy foliage and abundant flowering 
to assure heavy berry set or pollen production. 
The first of these hybrids, introduced in 1964, were Blue 
Girl (Plant Patent 2434) and Blue Boy (Plant Patent 2435). 
These rugged evergreen hollies are unique in their hardiness, 
growth characteristics and the berry production of Blue Girl. 
The lustrous dark foliage combined with the purple-blue stem 
color gives a distinctive blue tone to the plants. 
The importance of the Meserve hybrids is reflected in the 
creation of a new botanical species under the genus Ilex. It is 
Ilex X meserveae (1. rugosa F. Schmidt X I. aquifolium L.). 
It was officially described and designated by Dr. Shiu-Ying Hu 
in Arnoldia, the Arnold Arboretum, Vol. 30, No. 2, March 15. 
1970. 
Since the introduction 
of Blue Girl and Blue 
Boy, evaluation of other 
hybrids has been con- 
tinued by Mrs. Meserve 
in cooperation with The 
Conard-Pyle Co. The 
third of this hybrid 
species was introduced in 
1972 as Blue Prince, 
which yields a profusion 
of pollen and is the first 
male holly to be truly or- 
namental and not just 
utilitarian. 
Now in 1973, two 
more Ilex X meserveae 
have been introduced— 
Blue Princess and Blue Mrs. Kathleen Meserve 
Angel, which we present looking over her Hollies 
here. with a keen and critical eye. 

" NEW. This splendid 
Blue Princess new holly outdoes all 
others in its production of glossy, bright red berries borne 
in clusters along the stems. Growth is broad, upright and 
freely branched, with purple-blue stems. Plentiful dark 
evergreen foliage. Vigorous, ruggedly hardy and beautiful 
at all seasons. Plant Pat. App. For. 
$9.70 ea.—3 or more, $8.90 ea. 
OFFER 148 
1 each of 
Blue Princess and Blue Prince 
$17.50 

