Holly (Ilex) for Foliage Follow Up

Blow, blow, thou winter wind,
Thou art not so unkind
As man's ingratitude;
Thy tooth is not so keen,
Because thou art not seen,
Although thy breath be rude.
Heigh ho, sing heigh ho, unto the green holly;
most friendship is feigning, most loving mere folly:
Then, heigh ho, the holly!  This life is most jolly.

Freeze, freeze, thou bitter sky,
That dost not bite so nigh
As benefits forgot:
Though thou the waters warp,
Thy sting is not so sharp  As friend remember'd not.
Heigh ho, sing heigh ho, unto the green holly:
most friendship is feigning, most loving mere folly:
Then, heigh ho, the holly!  This life is most jolly.

 William Shakespeare

O reader! hast thou ever stood to see
The Holly-tree?
The eye that contemplates it well perceives
Its glossy leaves
Ordered by an Intelligence so wise
As might confound the Atheist's sophistries.

Below, a circling fence, its leaves are seen,
Wrinkled and keen;

No grazing cattle, through their prickly round,
Can reach to wound;
But, as they grow where nothing is to fear,
Smooth and unarmed the pointless leaves appear.

I love to view these things with curious eyes,
And moralize;
And in this wisdom of the Holly-tree
Can emblem see
Wherewith, perchance, to make a pleasant rhyme, -
One which may profit in the after-time.

Thus, though abroad, perchance, I might appear
Harsh and austere;
To those who on my leisure would intrude,
Reserved and rude;
Gentle at home amid my friends I'd be,
Like the high leaves upon the Holly-tree.

And should my youth - as youth is apt, I 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 their fadeless hues display
Less bright than they;
But when the bare and wintry woods we see,
What then so cheerful as the Holly-tree? -

So, serious should my youth appear among
The thoughtless throng;
So would I seem, amid the young and gay,
More grave than they;
That in my age as cheerful I might be
As the green winter of the Holly-tree. 

Robert Southey

The holly and the Ivy,
When they are both full grown,
Of all the trees that are in the wood,
The holly bears the crown. 

In ancient times, holly was considered 
magical and sacred because of its shiny leaves 
and ability to bear fruit in winter. 

The Druids believed that holly, 
with its shiny leaves and red berries 
stayed green to keep the earth beautiful 
when the sacred oak lost it leaves. 
    
It was believed that if you hung holly 
over your bed, you would have good dreams. 

 
At one time, holly was connected to the 
mythical Holly King - patron king of the winter 
solstice.  As the Winter Solstice Festivals 
evolved, holly remained a part of the 
holiday celebrations. 
 
Holly was the sacred plant of  Saturn 
and was used at the Roman Saturnalia festival to 
honor him. 
 Romans gave one another holly wreaths and carried 
them about decorating images of Saturn with it. 
 
Centuries later, in December, 
 while other Romans continued their pagan worship, 
Christians celebrated the birth of Jesus. 
 To avoid persecution, they decked their homes with 
Saturnalia holly. 
 
As Christian numbers increased and their customs 
prevailed, holly lost its pagan association 
and became a symbol of Christmas. 

It's pretty weedy here but it makes a great hedge and has those beautiful red berries in the winter.


I'm joining with Pam at Digging who hosts Foliage Follow Up every month on the day after bloom day to remind us of the importance of foliage in our gardens.