"val189" wrote in message
ups.com...
My holly bush 'came ' with the house, so I don't know its age.
It gets dappled sunlight til noon, then direct sun for about an hour
--
.
Right now, the leaves seem curled, not very green, and I see little of
no growth in any direction.
Never had berries, btw.
Leave it alone, try some kind of pruning, fertilizer?
I'd like to get some height.
The Black Thumb of Zone 9a thanks you.


Holly likes acidic soil, but don't assume this is the issue until you do a
soil test.

Contact your cooperative extension, find out if there's a local office
nearby, and if they will do a soil test for you. Your main concern should be
the pH, although other soil characteristics are good to know about.
Alternatively, go get a soil test kit and do the test yourself. They require
distilled water or rain water. Don't try and get around that requirement, or
you'll get inaccurate results.

Holly also likes lots of sun. Unless you're prepared to eliminate the reason
for the shade, there's obviously not much you can do about it. But, if you
improve whatever you can, you may get better results.