Ilex mucronata (Mountain holly)

FloraFinder uses cookies only for correct operation. More info. Okay

Ilex mucronata (L.) Powell Savolainen & Andrews

Mountain holly, swamp holly, catberry

Kingdom	Plantae	Plants, but not fungi, lichens, or algae
Subkingdom	Tracheobionta	Vascular plants—plants with a “circulatory system” for delivering water and nutrients
Division	Magnoliophyta	Flowering plants, also known as angiosperms
Class	Magnoliopsida	Dicotyledons—plants with two initial seed leaves
Subclass	Asteridae	A large class that encompasses asters
Order	Aquifoliales	Hollies and some fairly obscure genera
Family	Aquifoliaceae	Holly family
Genus	Ilex	Latin for “holly oak” (rather than holly!)
Species	mucronata	Mucronate, with a short, abrupt tip

About plant names...

Mountain holly is native to eastern North America. It prefers habitats that are moist, but drained, and is often found on mountain slopes.

Plants: A deciduous shrub that reach 9½' (3 m) (rarely 13' (4 m)) tall. Older bark is thin, gray, either smooth or rough, dotted with lumpy lenticels.

Leaves: Alternate, elliptic to oblong, sometimes wider toward the tip, hairless, 1-2½" (2.5-6.3 cm) long × ¾ that in width. Leaf edges may be smooth or finely serrated, with a sharp tip. Their petioles (stems) are ⅛-¾" (5-20 mm) long.

Flowers: Inconspicuous, whitish to greenish yellow, ⅛" (5 mm) in size, on thin peduncles (stalks) ⅞" (2.5 cm) or more in length. Each flower has 4-5 petals narrow, often bent, petals. Male flowers have yellow-tipped stamens between the petals. Female flowers have shorter sterile stamens and a large green urn-like ovary in the center, with a yellowish stigma atop.

Fruits: Round red drupes ⅛-¼" (6-7 mm) in diameter, with 3-5 pits. The surface is dull, not shiny.

Online References:

Minnesota Wildflowers

Wikipedia

Ontario Trees & Shrubs

The New England Wildflower Society’s GoBotany site

The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center