How can I determine the sex of my Holly bushes?

Answer 1

From the Home and Garden TV website:

"Mating Hollies

Q. I'm told that you need to have a male and female holly bush in order to get berries. How do I determine if I have one of each? Can I propagate male and female plants from cuttings taken from one bush?

A. It's true--there are both male and female hollies and you need one of each in order for the female to produce berries. Unfortunately, you can't tell by looking at the plants whether they are male or female. You can make the determination by dissecting the flowers, but even this is difficult because the flowers are so small. Nursery-grown hollies begin from cuttings of a positively-identified holly variety. The cuttings are labeled either male or female based upon the gender of the parent plant. It's possible to graft either a male or female branch onto an existing holly to produce berries, but you can't change the gender of a bush or a cutting. If you want to have only one holly, you could purchase one of the self-fertile hollies, so you need only one plant in order to have berries."
http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/gl_trees_shrubs_evergreen/article/0,1785,HGTV_3645_3346961,00.html

And from another site:

"What Sex Is Your Holly?
LAST UPDATE: 5/9/2005 2:33:54 PM

Well, it's time to stop and take a look at a few more of your great emailed gardening questions! Our first emailer asks:

"I have one holly bush that has never gotten berries. How can I tell if it's a male or female?"

Great question, as it's the female holly that has the berries, but needs a male holly for pollination…and they need to be within a bee's flying distance. The only way to tell is to look at their flowers, and bring back a few terms we learned in our botany classes in high school. All Holly flowers have four white petals. The male flower has four prominent stamens each having a stalk that supports an anther. The anthers have the sticky pollen on them. But here's the tell tale of the male flowers…look in the center of the flower. The ovary is very small or not there, and the center looks hollow.

Now, look at the female holly flower. Four white petals and they even have the four stamens like the male flowers, although they don't produce pollen. But, look at the center of the female flower. You'll find a prominent pistil made up of a stigma, style, and this very large green ovary.

Males have no green ovary in the center of the flower…females have a large green ovary in the center of the flower. It's as simple as that!

Our next emailer asks: "I have wild onions popping up in my landscape beds. I keep pulling them, but they keep coming back. What should I do?"

Only pull them if you're going to eat them…yes, they're very edible. But by pulling, you'll leave enough roots and bulbs below for them to re-grow. If you physically remove them, dig them out, roots and all, and replace the soil with new soil. Make sure you get everything when you dig them out. The other option is to spray with concentrated Roundup, but make sure you bruise the foliage first by hitting it or swiping it, to help remove the waxy coating on the outside of the foliage. And yes, it will take repeated applications of Roundup, to kill the onion clump totally.

Wild onions are highly edible; just make sure they have not been sprayed with a non edible herbicide. Hey, 2 for a dollar at the grocers - free in your backyard. That's a great deal!"
http://www.wkrc.com/guides/home/hometeamstory.aspx?content_id=BFC0900A-1ECF-41E7-89BA-56AD3CACBB47

Answer 2

Pictures Of Holly Bushes

Answer 3

Holly Bush Berries

Answer 4

From the Home and Garden TV website:

"Mating Hollies

Q. I'm told that you need to have a male and female holly bush in order to get berries. How do I determine if I have one of each? Can I propagate male and female plants from cuttings taken from one bush?

A. It's true--there are both male and female hollies and you need one of each in order for the female to produce berries. Unfortunately, you can't tell by looking at the plants whether they are male or female. You can make the determination by dissecting the flowers, but even this is difficult because the flowers are so small. Nursery-grown hollies begin from cuttings of a positively-identified holly variety. The cuttings are labeled either male or female based upon the gender of the parent plant. It's possible to graft either a male or female branch onto an existing holly to produce berries, but you can't change the gender of a bush or a cutting. If you want to have only one holly, you could purchase one of the self-fertile hollies, so you need only one plant in order to have berries."
http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/gl_trees_shrubs...

And from another site:

"What Sex Is Your Holly?
LAST UPDATE: 5/9/2005 2:33:54 PM

Well, it's time to stop and take a look at a few more of your great emailed gardening questions! Our first emailer asks:

"I have one holly bush that has never gotten berries. How can I tell if it's a male or female?"

Great question, as it's the female holly that has the berries, but needs a male holly for pollination…and they need to be within a bee's flying distance. The only way to tell is to look at their flowers, and bring back a few terms we learned in our botany classes in high school. All Holly flowers have four white petals. The male flower has four prominent stamens each having a stalk that supports an anther. The anthers have the sticky pollen on them. But here's the tell tale of the male flowers…look in the center of the flower. The ovary is very small or not there, and the center looks hollow.

Now, look at the female holly flower. Four white petals and they even have the four stamens like the male flowers, although they don't produce pollen. But, look at the center of the female flower. You'll find a prominent pistil made up of a stigma, style, and this very large green ovary.

Males have no green ovary in the center of the flower…females have a large green ovary in the center of the flower. It's as simple as that!

Our next emailer asks: "I have wild onions popping up in my landscape beds. I keep pulling them, but they keep coming back. What should I do?"

Only pull them if you're going to eat them…yes, they're very edible. But by pulling, you'll leave enough roots and bulbs below for them to re-grow. If you physically remove them, dig them out, roots and all, and replace the soil with new soil. Make sure you get everything when you dig them out. The other option is to spray with concentrated Roundup, but make sure you bruise the foliage first by hitting it or swiping it, to help remove the waxy coating on the outside of the foliage. And yes, it will take repeated applications of Roundup, to kill the onion clump totally.

Wild onions are highly edible; just make sure they have not been sprayed with a non edible herbicide. Hey, 2 for a dollar at the grocers - free in your backyard. That's a great deal!"
http://www.wkrc.com/guides/home/hometeam...
Source(s):

http://www.hgtv.com/hgtv/gl_trees_shrubs...

Answer 5

I am currently 19 weeks and 2 days along in my pregnancy and I go back in April 3 when I will be 20 weeks and 4 days along. I went to get Ultrasound when I was 16 weeks and they couldn't tell the sex of the baby because of the position. So hopefully when I go in on the 3rd, they will be able to tell...But again it just really depends on the position the baby is in. More than likely they should be able to tell! Best of luck to you and your baby!

Answer 6

I don't think they have a certain gender.....they have both. Part of the tree is male and part of it is female. It's the same with flowers and earth worms, too.

Answer 7

The male tree does not produce berries in winter.........

Answer 8

if they produce berries, they're female

Answer 9

chk below 4 u kno wat haha lol jus kiddin