Pathways...among the Hollies 
“He who plants trees loves others besides himself.’”-—Scotch proverb. 
Which reminds me of a story surrounding an old time custom of 
planting a tree upon the birth of a daughter to provide the wood for the 
making of her hope chest. While the hollies would scarcely be chosen 
for such a thoughtful endowment, yet one can hardly think of another 
tree which has so endeared itself in the homes as well as in the hearts 
of people everywhere. Associated for centuries with the celebration of 
a joyous event the Christmas holly is ever the cheerful messenger 
bearing tidings of happiness and good will. 
“O, Reader, hast thou ever stood to see the Holly Tree 
And should my youth, as youth is apt, [ know, 
Some harshness show, 
All vain asperities I day by day 
Would wear away. 
Till the smooth temper of my age should be 
Like the high leaves upon the holly tree. 
**And as when all the summer trees are seen 
So bright and green, 
The holly leaves a sober hue display 
Less bright than they ; 
But when the bare and wintry woods we see, 
What then so cheerful as the holly tree?” 
* * * * * * * —SOUTHEY 
Have you ever heard that hollies are not really trees, but rather shrubs? Some 
species such as the English hollies and our native Opacas grow in the form of 
trees and are known by those in the know as arborescent, or tree-like shrubs. 
Being shrubs they lend themselves to pruning and shearing without the slightest 
protest. Never need you hesitate to clip or shape your hollies to your will. Any 
month is safe for it’s always open season for giving them a beauty treatment. 
And speaking of shrubs and having had to bring so much of the Latin into the 
naming of the hollies, let’s take on another interesting descriptive term, that of 
semper virens meaning ever-living to describe the amazing life span of the hollies. 
Many European hollies living today have recorded histories running back for 
centuries of time. So when you plant a holly you can truly consider that it will 
become a living heritage of beauty for your children’s children. 
While on the subject of longevity, one of the reasons for the sturdiness of the 
hollies is their apparent immunity to disease. True enough the hollies will some- 
times become host to some pesky parasites, but all of these succumb readily to 
well known, economical, and easily applied chemical spray control. 
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