10 award-winning (AGM) hollies and ivies

Whether as ground cover, climbing up walls, or shaped into elegant topiaries, hollies and ivies provide both beauty and structure in any landscape. If you’re looking to add vibrancy and year-round interest to your garden, consider Graham Rice’s favourite RHS Award of Garden Merit (AGM) winning varieties.

The prolific holly

Small, white flowers appear in late spring, followed by bright red berries

Rich purple young growth turns into long, brightly

Variegated means having leaves or other plant parts with streaks, blotches or patches of different colours. Typically, these would be a combination of two colours, such as green and gold or green and white.

The most colourful evergreen climber

‘Dentata Variegata’ is a vigorous, self-clinging large evergreen climber

Truly dramatic, the large, drooping leaves of Hedera colchica ‘Dentata Variegata’ hang distinctively from the branches. The foliage of this variegated Persian ivy is pale green in colour, broadly edged with deep creamy yellow. It works well both as a wall covering or as ground cover in shade or sun. Probably the most colourful of all evergreen climbers. 4–8m (13–26ft). Hardiness rating H5.

Good on walls or fences

Dark green with a central splash of yellow and yellow-green are characteristic of this plant

Also known, incorrectly, as ‘Paddy’s Pride’, Hedera colchica ‘Sulphur Heart’ has softer colouring than ‘Dentata Variegata’ and smaller foliage. Each leaf rolls back a little at the sides, highlighting the irregular bright yellow central splash, which fades with age and is surrounded by a pale green outer zone. Good on walls or fences, or as ground cover. 5m (16ft). Hardiness rating H5.

A multi-season beauty

Small, dull white flowers appear in spring, followed by bright red berries in autumn and winter

Ilex aquifolium ‘Argentea Marginata’ is a multi-season holly. The new young shoots are distinctively tinted pinkish-red. Its broad foliage is spiny, but not excessively so, with a broad creamy white margin surrounding the olive green centre. In winter, clusters of glossy, bright red berries line the branches. Vigorous, it is one of the best varieties for trimming as a hedge or topiary. 12m+ (39ft+). Hardiness rating H6.

Superb ground cover

This large evergreen climber has lovely shallowly-lobed leaves, but no flowers

One of the most popular of all ivies, Hedera helix ‘Glacier’ is widely used both indoors as a houseplant and outdoors. This superb ground cover ivy thrives even in dry and shady situations and works well on dark walls. Its silvery-grey mottling and slender cream leaf edges bring new brightness to shady areas. 2.5m (8ft). Hardiness rating H5.

Variegated and attractive

This is a bushy evergreen tree about 10m tall, with purple young stems

Ilex aquifolium ‘Madame Briot’ features large, spiny, rather wavy foliage held on purple stems. Each leaf is dark olive green with a broad, contrasting bright yellow margin and light yellow mottling. The slightly orange-tinted red berries of this dependable variegated holly make an attractive combination with the foliage and are borne on large, broad-growing plants. 1.8–2.4m (6–8ft). Hardiness rating H6.

Ideal for arrangements

Ivy ‘Parsley Crested’ has green leaves with wavy, crisped margins, but no flowers

A distinctive, brightly coloured ivy, the main feature of Hedera helix ‘Parsley Crested’ is the tightly waved leaf margins. The surface of the leaf may also be puckered or waved, resulting in an attractive and intriguing plant. It produces long ‘trails’, making it ideal for cutting for arrangements or planting in baskets. 20m (65.6ft). Hardiness rating H5.

The (almost) spiny-free shrub

Slightly spiny leaves are margined with bright yellow, but occasionally, all gold leaves are produced

Despite its name, Ilex x altaclerensis ‘Golden King’ is a female holly with a dense crop of slightly brownish-red berries set among colourful leaves. Purple stems carry nearly spine-free foliage with wide, bright yellow margins, making ‘Golden King’ one of the most colourful of all garden shrubs. Vigorous, but easily clipped into a hedge if required. 3m (9.8ft). Hardiness rating H6.

Good in shade and sun

Ivy ‘Maple leaf’ grows well in moist, but well-drained soil

Hedera helix ‘Maple Leaf’ is an evergreen climbing shrub with dark green leaves that are deeply cut into five narrow, toothed lobes, with the central lobe being the longest. This ivy thrives in both shade or sun, but it needs well-drained soil. 1.5–2.5m (5–6.5ft). Hardiness rating H5.

One of the brightest

Small white flowers in late spring are followed by reddish-brown berries ripening to red in autumn

One of the brightest of all hollies, the large and almost spine-free foliage of Ilex x altaclerensis ‘Lawsoniana’ is vividly splashed with bright yellow and pale green across the centre of each leaf. The brownish-red berries are carried in generous clusters along the branches. Although rather upright in growth, branches with all-green foliage may sometimes appear, but these are easily cut out. 4m (13ft). Hardiness rating H6.