Holly
I’m on a mission to celebrate and advocate for our native and wild plants that contribute so highly to nature.
Weeds That Feed is a two-part story.
First, A Pantry for Wildlife, where we take an in-depth look at the insects a plant supports.
Then Grow This Instead, where we compare similar ornamental plants and ask a simple question:
If a plant feeds the ecosystem, does it earn its place?
This week’s Weed That Feeds is holly — Ilex aquifolium.
Maybe not quite a weed — but certainly an overlooked native when it comes to performance.
A Pantry for Wildlife
Making invisible value visible
Holly is an evergreen woodland understory tree that thrives on almost any soil, from chalk to clay. It forms dense shelter for birds and insects and grows naturally in woodlands, hedgerows, and as a standalone tree or shrub.
But why is it so good?
What does holly actually feed?
Butterflies & moths
Holly is the primary larval food plant for just one butterfly — the Holly blue butterfly.
That means it’s the caterpillar’s first choice.
The holly blue suffered a sharp decline — around 80% between 2023 and 2024 — yet since 2010, populations are still up by around 35%. A reminder that trends are complex, and resilience matters.
Holly also feeds the caterpillars of five moth species, including:
The swallow-tailed moth — a beautiful, ghostly nocturnal species
The double-striped pug, whose larvae feed on holly and gorse
The yellow-barred brindle, whose larvae feed on holly and ivy
The dun-bar, known for its cannibalistic tendencies
The privet hawk moth — Britain’s largest hawk moth, with a wingspan of up to 12 cm
Privet is itself a native plant — another reminder of how connected are our own flora and fauna.
Beyond Lepidoptera
Holly supports another 22 insect species, including:
7 beetles
1 fly
11 true bugs (sap-sucking insects)
3 micro-moths
That’s 28 larval and phytophagous insect species, before pollinators are even considered.
Pollinators
Holly supports 19 pollinator species, all bees:
The honey bee
At least two bumblebee species
15 species of solitary bee, many of them mining bees
In total, holly supports 47 insect species — herbivores and pollinators combined.
Quietly. Reliably. Year after year.
Cultural and seasonal value
Beyond ecology, holly is one of Britain’s most culturally important native trees.
Its evergreen leaves symbolised resilience and protection. In winter, branches were hung outside houses during storms to protect against lightning. Its blood-red berries were thought to ward off evil spirits — perhaps because they glow so vividly when almost everything else has faded.
Holly isn’t just for Christmas.
It feeds insects throughout the year and birds through the winter.
Grow This Instead
Choose plants that wildlife choose
If you only have space for one evergreen with glossy leaves and bright berries, Ilex aquifolium is a remarkably strong choice — and it outperforms most ornamental alternatives.
Holly is:
Evergreen with year-round interest
Adaptable to most soils
A shrub or tree, reaching up to 12 m
Flowering in May–June with small white blooms
Dioecious — male and female plants, with berries forming on females
A vital winter food source for thrushes, blackbirds, and redwings
So what are the usual substitutes — and how do they compare?
Portuguese laurel (Prunus lusitanica)
Similar height (10–12 m) and often planted for structure.
But it supports just two phytophagous (herbivorous) insects, though it is a food plant for the holly blue caterpillar.
Structurally useful — ecologically limited.
Skimmia (Skimmia japonica)
A compact evergreen shrub with red berries on female plants.
Introduced from Japan and China in the late 19th century.
It has only three insect interactions, and birds rarely eat the berries.
Firethorn (Pyracantha coccinea)
Smaller than holly, reaching around 4 m.
Birds do use it, but it supports only three phytophagous insects.
Why holly earns its place
Holly grows almost anywhere.
It can be:
A wall shrub
A specimen plant
A hedgerow component
A tree
Even a living security barrier
All while feeding nearly 50 insect species and supporting birds through the hardest months of the year.
That’s performance.
A quieter way forward
I hope this encourages you to look again at the plants we often overlook.
Holly isn’t just a decoration.
It’s infrastructure.
It’s shelter.
It’s food.
And if we want gardens, landscapes, and rewilded spaces that truly function, we need to choose plants that wildlife choose.
Andy
Photo by Anne Drotleff
