Very decorative and bright red - the berries of the easy-care holly are a welcome eye-catcher in the winter garden, but also in the Christmassy decorated living room of our English or French neighbors. Unfortunately, these fruits are also poisonous.
The red fruits of the holly are poisonous
Branches of holly as Christmas decorations
If you would like to use the holly as a Christmas decoration, then cut off some branches with fruit just before the holidays. But remember that holly is a slow grower, so don't cut too much.
In addition, the berries are very poisonous to humans. Make sure that small children cannot reach the berries and that they cannot put fallen berries in their mouths. Even two fruits can cause severe symptoms of poisoning in them.
Fruits as winter food for birds
As the pale white flowers wither, bright red berries slowly form. They stay on the bush well into winter and only become soft and edible for many native bird species when the frost hits. For them, the fruits are a coveted winter food, but for other animals they can be a deadly poison. The lethal dose depends on the size of the animal; two to three berries may be enough for a dog.
A hedge of holly
With holly you can plant a very decorative hedge, especially if you combine different species with different colored foliage. The Japanese holly is also well suited for a hedge planting. However, the poisonous fruits should also be grown out of the reach of small children or pets.
The essentials in brief:
- fruits very poisonous
- even two berries cause severe symptoms of poisoning
- also potentially fatal for small pets
- important winter food for many native bird species
- very pretty Christmas decorations
tips
As a Christmas decoration, use caution when using holly sprigs and make sure that small children do not put the berries in their mouths.