Ilex crenata 'Bennett's Compacta' ~ Bennett's Compact Japanese Holly shade-garden It is a popular choice

It is a popular choice for small gardens or landscapes due to its manageable size

Spider mites can be an issue

The large cone panicles bloom pure white and fade to pink in summer attracting butterflies

IMAGE: Tracie Hall

Fruits: Thornless Blackberry

Ilex crenata 'Bennett's Compacta' ~ Bennett's Compact Japanese Holly shade-garden It is a popular choiceBennett's Compact Japanese Holly is a dense compact evergreen shrub with a tidy rounded habit of upright branches and small lustrous green foliage. If pollinated, the inconspicuous flowers in spring to give way to small red fruits in fall which last through winter. Best planted in moist, slightly acidic well drained soils. Hollies are dioecious and need both male and female plants to produce fruit. Type: Shrub Origins: East Asia and eastern Russia