Delaware State Tree: American Holly

The American Holly serves as Delaware's official state tree. This broadleaf evergreen typically grows 40 to 50 feet tall. The Delaware champion American Holly stands in Delaware City at 60 feet tall with a 121-inch trunk circumference. Trees can live 100 years or more.

The tree displays dark green, leathery leaves with spiny edges measuring two to four inches long. Leaves stay on the tree year-round. Female trees produce bright red berries that ripen in fall and persist through winter. Male trees provide pollen but never produce berries.

American Holly grows naturally along the East Coast from Massachusetts to Florida and west to Texas. In Delaware, it thrives in forests as an understory species. Delaware's abundance made the state famous for holly production.

The common names are American Holly, Christmas Holly, and White Holly. The scientific name is Ilex opaca. The species name opaca means 'shady' in Latin, referring to the tree's dark green foliage and shade tolerance.

When Pilgrims landed in Massachusetts in 1620, they recognized American Holly as similar to English Holly, which Europeans used for Christmas decorations.

Delaware declared American Holly its state tree on May 1, 1939. Governor Richard C. McMullen signed legislation passed by the General Assembly. William S. Taber, Delaware's State Forester, supported the designation after his secretary Olive Wilkins urged him to propose it, citing the tree's beauty and economic importance.

The timing coincided with Delaware's peak as the Holly Capital of the World. By the 1930s, Delaware led the nation in holly production. The industry employed 8,500 people. Milton became 'Land of Holly.' Farmers harvested holly as the last cash crop of the season, earning up to $500 between Thanksgiving and Christmas.

Charles C. Jones Sr. pioneered the export industry. Starting his holly business in 1906, 'Jones, the Holly Wreath Man' became Delaware's leading exporter. The Pennsylvania Railroad ran special 'Holly Express' trains on Saturdays before Christmas to transport products. The industry collapsed in the 1950s when plastic wreaths replaced natural holly.

Delaware's state flower is the Peach Blossom (Prunus persica), adopted on March 9, 1895. Delaware earned the nickname 'The Peach State' when orchards contained more than 800,000 peach trees. Both American Holly and Peach Blossom represent Delaware's agricultural heritage. Delaware also adopted peach pie as the state dessert in 2009.

The evergreen leaves provide the easiest identification. Dark green, leathery leaves with sharp spiny edges stay on year-round. Each leaf measures two to four inches long with a glossy upper surface. The spines along margins vary among individual trees.

Female trees display bright red berries from fall through winter. Male trees produce small greenish-white flowers with yellow pollen in spring. The bark appears light gray and smooth on young trees, developing a warty texture with age. The tree maintains a pyramidal or conical shape.

American Holly symbolizes Delaware's entrepreneurial spirit and agricultural innovation. The state transformed an abundant native tree into a thriving export industry employing thousands. Roadside hollies throughout Delaware serve as living reminders of this industrious chapter in state history.