Is This a Holly? If Not...What Is It?

[Mary Jo]

Hello, I bought a house in December, and we have several of these plants in the backyard. They don't seem to need much care. They've had red berries on them ever since we moved in, but the small white flowers are new, maybe in the past few weeks. We thought it might be a type of holly, but I can't match this plant to any pictures of holly plants online.

We live in north Florida, zone 8B, if that helps. Can anyone tell me what kind of plant this is? Thank you!

 

[Chuck]

Hello, I bought a house in December, and we have several of these plants in the backyard. They don't seem to need much care. They've had red berries on them ever since we moved in, but the small white flowers are new, maybe in the past few weeks. We thought it might be a type of holly, but I can't match this plant to any pictures of holly plants online.

We live in north Florida, zone 8B, if that helps. Can anyone tell me what kind of plant this is? Thank you!

Yaupon holly

 

[Mary Jo]

Thank you!

 

[Marck]

This is Coral Ardisia, also known as Christmas Berry (Ardisia crenata). This shrub is native to mainland Asia and the islands of Hainan, Japan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Taiwan; but it is considered invasive in the southeastern U.S. and eastern Australia. Ardisia is a genus in the Primrose family (Primulaceae).