Holly

Common Name:               Holly

Scientific Name:               Ilex aquifolium

Irish Name:         Cuileann

Family Group:    Aquifoliaceae

This is a well-known small tree which is widespread throughout the country.  It has small white, four-petalled flowers (6-10mm) in clusters from May to July and these are followed in late autumn by the familiar bright scarlet berries.  Its evergreen, glossy leaves are stiff and leathery with spiny margins, the upper side being dark green, the lower side a paler green.  These leaves – together with those of Ivy – is the larval foodplant of the Holly Blue Butterfly.  Holly is a native plant belonging to the family Aquifoliaceae.

This information is courtesy of http://www.wildflowersofireland.net/