Illustration
Dragon Lady Holly
Ilex × aquipernyi 'Meschick'
Dragon Lady Holly blooms from May through May.
Months here are Northern Hemisphere months; in the Southern Hemisphere, shift them by six months.
Growing Dragon Lady Holly
Plant it in full sun. It prefers moderate water. It is hardy in USDA zones 6–8. Expect it to reach about 16 ft tall and 5.5 ft wide at maturity, in roughly 5 years (a house reading).
Is Dragon Lady Holly toxic to dogs or cats?
- Listed as toxic to dogs and cats by Pet Poison Helpline.
Lists differ and none is complete. If a pet eats a plant and seems unwell, call a veterinarian or a pet poison helpline.
What was checked
Nine facts were checked against named botanical sources, each recorded beside the sources that carried it: mature height and spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color, the trait tags, and years to mature size, which rests on a recorded house rule where no publisher states one and is marked so. Soil, diseases, pests, toxicity and the plant's own names have not yet been read for this plant, and its trait tags are the ones a feature uses rather than every word a page prints. Each fact above carries its own mark. The planting, spacing and size sections are derived from these checked facts by a fixed rule, not checked separately, and the plant type is the library's own classification.
When to plant Dragon Lady Holly
Plant Dragon Lady Holly in early spring as soon as the soil is workable, or in early fall at least six weeks before your first frost, so roots establish in cool weather. In zone 7, the middle of its hardy zones 6 to 8, spring means March to May and fall means September or October. Once settled, it blooms in May.
Month-by-month timing for your zone is on the planting calendar; if you garden near zone 7, the middle of this plant's hardy range, start with zone 7 in March. Derived from the plant's category, zones and bloom months plus typical zone frost dates, not checked separately.
How big does Dragon Lady Holly get?
16 fttall5 ft 7 inan adult5.5 ftwideSee Dragon Lady Holly in a garden plan: the planner shows it in 3D beside everything else you add, growing toward this size over the years.
How far apart to plant Dragon Lady Holly
Derived from the mature spread above by a fixed rule, not checked separately: spacing is the spread, center to center.
Space Dragon Lady Holly about 5.5 ft apart, center to center, so each plant has room to reach its full width.
Add Dragon Lady Holly to a garden plan and the planner draws it at its full width, so you see the spacing before you buy.
Where these facts come from
Dragon Lady Holly's height, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water, bloom months and color and trait tags were checked against 10 published sources on October 20, 2026. Each one is linked below with every fact it carried, which can include a fact this page still marks as not yet checked, because a source carrying a value is not the same as the value being held to the standard. Facts not in that list, and the planting, spacing and size sections, are not covered by these sources.
- Missouri Botanical GardenPlant Finder, Meschick DRAGON LADY cultivar entryheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun, water and bloom months and color
- pridescorner.comPrides Corner Farms, Dragon Lady (Meschick) cultivar pageheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and bloom months and color
- Plant AddictsDragon Lady Holly productheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and water
- Pleasant Run NurseryDragon Lady (Meschick) PP4996 cultivar pageheight, spread, hardiness zones, sun and trait tags
- RHSRoyal Horticultural Society, Dragon Lady (Meschick) female cultivar pr...height, bloom months and color and trait tags
- NC State ExtensionPlant Toolbox, Ilex x aquipernyi hybrid pagesun, water and trait tags
- plantdatabase.uconn.eduUniversity of Connecticut Plant Database, Meschick cultivar paragraphheight, spread and sun
- dawesarb.arboretumexplorer.orgThe Dawes Arboretum, Meschick Dragon Lady accession recordhardiness zones and trait tags
- pubs.ext.vt.eduVirginia Cooperative Extension, Evergreen Hollies, Alex Niemieraheight and sun
- woodyplants.cals.cornell.eduCornell University Woody Plants Database, Dragon Lady cultivar noteheight and spread
How the checking works, and what each standard covers, is on the verified plants page.
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Drop this plant onto a 3D plan, see how it fills in, and watch your whole garden bloom across the year.