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Large Gallberry

Ilex coriacea

Found in pocosins, more restricted to wet, peaty sites than I. glabra , though very often intermixed in their regions of co-occurrence. FloraQuest, phone app (app page) What its natural habitat tells you

97
Keystone

Native to Virginia. How scores work Is it native here?

Profile 100%

Height
About 12 feet
Light
Full sun, Partial shade
Soil moisture
Usually moist
Will it fit your yard?

Rare or protected plant. Specialist conservation planting; excluded from routine garden suggestions. Plant caution source

Hidden from default planting suggestions. Wildlife value and native status remain unchanged.

At a glance

Life cycle
Woody perennial
Leaves
Evergreen
Bloom
April to May
Fruiting season
Late July to October

Not yet recorded · Spread

Recorded in 3 Virginia counties.

Natural habitats

Places it grows wild. Not a planting requirement. Each habitat page lists the plants and wildlife also found there.

Pocosins and bay forests

Dense low pocosin
Dense low pocosin. Shown: Shaken Creek Preserve, Pender and Onslow Counties, North Carolina, a neighboring state.Dense low pocosin, Robert Thornhill, undated. CC BY 4.0. Source record.

All habitats

Also found with this plant

Wildlife whose habitat models include habitats this plant grows in, in Virginia. Shared habitat, not food. 104 animals.

All wildlife of Virginia

Ecological relationships

Who uses this plant?

What these records mean

52CaterpillarsGenus host records with ranges including VA

Genus host records with ranges including VA · Ilex

  • Acharia stimuleaSaddleback Caterpillar Moth
  • Anavitrinella pampinariaCommon Gray, Cranberry Spanworm
  • Antheraea polyphemusPolyphemus Moth
  • Apatelodes torrefactaSpotted Apatelodes
  • Argyrotaenia velutinanaRed-Banded Leafroller Moth, Jack Pine Tube Moth
  • Automeris ioIo Moth
  • Callophrys henriciHenry's Elfin
  • Cecrita biundataWavy-Lined Heterocampa
  • Celastrina idellaHolly Azure, American Holly Azure
  • Cenopis reticulatanaReticulated Fruitworm Moth
Show all 52
  • Cepphis armatariaScallop Moth
  • Choristoneura rosaceanaOblique-Banded Leafroller Moth, Rosaceous Leaf Roller
  • Coelodasys unicornisUnicorn Caterpillar Moth
  • Dolba hyloeusPawpaw Sphinx
  • Egira alternansAlternate Woodling
  • Ennomos magnariaMaple Spanworm Moth, Notchwing Geometer
  • Episemasia solitariaSolitary Ruddy
  • Episimus tyriusMaple Tip Borer
  • Euclea delphiniiSpiny Oak-Slug Moth
  • Eupithecia miserulataCommon Eupithacia, Common Pug
  • Feltia subterraneaSubterranean Dart, Granulate Cutworm
  • Haematopis gratariaChickweed Geometer
  • Harrisimemna trisignataHarris's Three-Spot
  • Herpetogramma pertextalisBold-Feathered Grass Moth
  • Herpetogramma thestealisZigzag Herpetogramma, Subtle-Feathered Grass Moth
  • Hyphantria cuneaFall Webworm
  • Ilexia intractataBlack-Dotted Ruddy, Holly Looper
  • Larisa subsolanaDark-Based Larisa
  • Lascoria ambigualisAmbiguous Moth, Ambiguous Litter Moth
  • Lithophane viridipallensPale Green Pinion
  • Malacosoma disstriaForest Tent Caterpillar
  • Manduca rusticaRustic Sphinx
  • Megalopyge opercularisSouthern Flannel Moth, Puss Caterpillar
  • Metaxaglaea violaceaHolly Sallow
  • Morrisonia confusaConfused Woodgrain
  • Oiketicus abbotiiAbbot's Bagworm Moth
  • Orgyia leucostigmaWhite-Marked Tussock Moth
  • Orthosia alurinaGray Quaker
  • Orthosia rubescensRuby Quaker
  • Papilio palamedesPalamedes Swallowtail
  • Platynota rostranaOmnivorous Platynota
  • Prolimacodes badiaSkiff Moth, Skiff Caterpillar
  • Protoboarmia porcelariaPorcelain Gray, Dashedlined Looper
  • Psilocorsis cryptolechiellaBlack-Fringed Leaftier
  • Rhopobota dietzianaWinterberry Moth
  • Rhopobota naevanaBlackheaded Fireworm, Holly Bud Moth, Holly Tortrix
  • Schizura ipomaeaeMorning-Glory Prominent, Checkered-Fringe Prominent
  • Sphinx kalmiaeFawn Sphinx, Laurel Sphinx
  • Spodoptera frugiperdaFall Armyworm Moth
  • Synanthedon kathyaeHolly Clearwing Borer
  • Thyridopteryx ephemeraeformisEvergreen Bagworm Moth
  • Rhopobota finitimana
Shropshire & Tallamy 2025, Lepidoptera of North America north of Mexico, ZooKeys 1261 (ODbL)
35BeesSoutheastern regional records

Southeastern regional records · Ilex

Individual names are not available yet.

Noori, Seltmann & Orr 2026, A curated and integrated dataset for exploring global bee-plant interactions (GloBI), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
3Specialist beesPollen specialists

Pollen specialists · Ilex

  • Colletes banksi
  • Colletes brimleyi
  • Perdita floridensis
Smith, Bachelder, Russell, Morales, Mosher & Seltmann 2024, Bee-Specialization-Modeling v0.6.1 (specialist host table compiled from J. Fowler's pollen specialist bee lists), Zenodo, CC BY 4.0
11BirdsRecorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim

Recorded genus food-resource interactions; not a state feeding claim · Ilex

  • Hylocichla mustelinaWood Thrush
  • Sialia sialisEastern Bluebird
  • Turdus migratoriusAmerican Robin
  • Bonasa umbellusRuffed Grouse
  • Catharus fuscescensVeery
  • Catharus guttatusHermit Thrush
  • Catharus minimus/bicknelliGray-cheeked/Bicknell's Thrush
  • Catharus ustulatusSwainson's Thrush
  • Meleagris gallopavoWild Turkey
  • Sturnus vulgarisEuropean Starling
Show all 11
  • Vireo griseusWhite-eyed Vireo
Hurlbert, Olsen, Sawyer & Winner 2021, Avian Diet Database, Scientific Data 8: 260 (CC0)

Direct food only: birds recorded eating this genus across North America. Caterpillars on host plants also feed nesting birds. NC Native Plant Society: butterfly gardening

No records yet · Ants · Beetles · Flies · Adult butterflies / moths · Other wasps · Other insects

Growing and identification

Plant details

Family
Aquifoliaceae
Hardiness
Zones 6a–9b
Soil pH
Acidic to neutral
Flower color
Green or white
Growth rate
Moderate
Growth habit
Forms thickets
Foliage color
Dark green
Fruit begins
Late July
Fruit ends
October
Growing sources and scope
  • Bloom · “April to May” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Flower color · “Green or white” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; USDA PLANTS, Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differ)
  • Foliage color · “Dark green” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Fruit begins · “Late July” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Fruit ends · “October” · FloraQuest: Carolinas, Georgia (Southeastern Flora Team), phone app (app page) (ranked first; USDA PLANTS differs) · Carolinas and Georgia
  • Growth habit · “Forms thickets” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Growth rate · “Moderate” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Hardiness · “Zones 6a–9b” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Height · “About 12 feet” · USDA PLANTS · Nationwide species characteristics; local growing conditions may vary
  • Leaves · “Evergreen” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox
  • Life cycle · “Woody perennial” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs)
  • Light · “Full sun (6 or more hours of direct sunlight a day); Partial shade (direct sunlight only part of the day, 2-6 hours)” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs)
  • Soil · “Moist; Occasionally wet” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox (ranked first; Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center differs)
  • Soil pH · “Acidic to neutral” · NC Extension Plant Toolbox

Conservation status

Virginia rankS1
Global rankG5
VA statusNot verified
Federal statusNot verified

Conservation source Global and federal source

In your garden

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How to check your spot

Growing cautions

  • Suckers and forms colonies. USDA PLANTS lists its growth form as thicket forming. USDA PLANTS

For planning only; these do not change the score or Fit.

Sources