On 10/1/2017 10:40 AM, Wildthyme wrote:
Hello I've wanted holly tree in my garden for awhile and don't want to
buy one as most are too small. I've located one in the wild in a hedge
row (on land I own) but could do with some advice on how to move it.
I've tried moving one to my garden before (twice) the first one died and
the other just about clung on but is half dead and going to take ages to
grow now.

Is it a bad time of year to move such a tree? The one I've located looks
like its about to flower. Also is there any difference between the ones
with red berries and ones with no berries? The leaves on these trees
dark green and spiky (except not spiky strangely on the one I've got my
eye on).

My advice on nursery (garden center) plants carries into transplanting:
The smaller plant is best. I have several reasons for this advice.

A small plant is easiest to move and plant. It requires a smaller
planting hole, which means less digging. You can even dig a
proportionally larger hole, which means the plant's roots are much more
likely to become established than for a large plant.

A small plant from a container is less likely to be pot-bound than a
larger plant. Removing a small plant from the ground to plant elsewhere
often results in less damage to roots than doing that to a large plant.
In both cases, planting a small plant generally puts a smaller demand on
disturbed roots for moisture than results when planting a large plant.

Often, a small plant will grow sufficiently fast so that, in 3-5 years,
it will be the same as having planted a large plant.

To get a small plant, try rooting cuttings from the target "wild" holly.
Cuttings of woody plants have a high rate of failure, so you would want
to put up several cuttings. If more than one survives and starts to
grow, plant the most vigorous and trash the rest.

--
David E. Ross
Climate: California Mediterranean, see
http://www.rossde.com/garden/climate.html
Gardening diary at http://www.rossde.com/garden/diary