Ilex crenata var. crenata (Japanese holly, "Inutsuge")

Japanese name: イヌツゲ （犬黄楊）
Scientific name: Ilex crenata var. crenata

[Overview]
An evergreen small tree 2–6 m tall, found in sunny grasslands and forest edges in the mountains.
Rarely, some grow into trees exceeding 10 m.
Young branches are angular and densely hairy.
The leaves are simple and densely alternate, elliptical, 1–3 cm long and 0.5–1.6 cm wide, thick, with a few coarse serrations on the margin.
The petiole is 1–2 mm long.
The plant is dioecious.
In both male and female plants, flowers are borne in the leaf axils of the current year's branches; male flowers are borne 2–6 in umbels, and female flowers are solitary.
The flowers are small, white and 4-petaled.
The fruit is spherical, 6–7 mm in diameter, and ripens black.

[Cultivation]
Propagate by cuttings.
Growing from seed is also possible, but plants raised from seed will turn out to be both male and female.
When sowing, harvest ripe fruit, wash off the pulp, bury the seeds in moistened vermiculite or similar so they do not dry out, and store them in a cool, dark place; take them out in March–April of the following year and wash them thoroughly once more before sowing.
It prefers fertile soil in a sunny, well-drained site.
For potted plants and plants in the ground for less than 2 years, water thoroughly when the soil surface dries.
For established plants in the ground, watering is not necessary unless sunny weather continues and the soil becomes very dry.
In winter, apply compost by digging several holes around the plant and burying it.
Pests and diseases include leaf rollers, Acrobasis moths, spider mites and scale insects.

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