Yaupon Holly (Ilex vomitoria) lies somewhere between a small tree and a large shrub in stature when mature, and most cultivars sold at garden centers are dwarf shrubby forms. (Not that this species is easy to find there, since few gardeners are familiar with them here as Yaupon is native to our south and is barely winter-hardy in Maryland, though your region should be fine in all but the harshest winters. The native range of Yaupon does not extend into Maryland for wild populations; refer to the lime-green counties on the linked page.) Even taller growers might not have a trunk clear enough of branches with foliage to allow for a good view under their canopy, but that depends on the height clear that you need.

Yes, Yaupon and other holly species are dioecious, which means that male flowers and female flowers (the latter being what turns into fruit once pollinated) are borne on separate plants. Most cultivars are female since berry production is a desired trait. Female hollies generally need to be pollinated by a male the same species, though there might be a bit of flexibility to this for some species; we don't have detailed information about which those may be, but hollies can sometimes hybridize, indicating this can happen naturally (and under human intervention as well, when holly hybrids are bred deliberately). Ideally, though, find a male Yaupon holly as a pollinator. We do not know what suppliers offer them, so you may need to search. The ratio of male-to-female doesn't need to be 1-to-1; often, about a half-dozen female plants can be pollinated by a single male.

Cultivars tend to be of known sex, since they are all clones of each other and share identical traits. If growing the straight species of Yaupon (thus, not a cultivar), then you'd need to look closely at the open flowers to see if any have an ovary or not, which will look like a green bump in the center of the bloom. Out of flower, and in the absence of developing berries, there won't be any way to tell a male plant from a female.

We're not certain what prior UMD plant giveaway you may be referring to. Sometimes certain departments or units give away plants at Maryland Day (the April campus-wide festival), so perhaps it was that, though the particular plants shared can vary from year to year. We are not aware of any plant giveaways taking place at this time.

More information about the site conditions would be needed before we can provide plant recommendations. Just about anything should have enough root mass to combat erosion, though if you are gardening in the Critical Area or Buffer zone, some species might be encouraged over others. (You would need to check with county or municipal government regarding any restrictions to planting in either zone.)

• Is the area exposed to full summer sun, or partially shaded by other vegetation or buildings?
• Does the soil drain well, skew dry due to a sandy texture and height above the water line, or skew damp? Does it receive any brackish water inundation during high tides or storms? If needed, a laboratory soil test can screen for salt contamination and determine whether the soil is acidic or alkaline. (Hollies need acidic soil.)
• Do deer visit browse that part of the yard? (Even if they don't consume much, the presence of bucks can risk serious trunk damage if they rub antlers on a tree.)
• What is the desired mature height overall, and what minimum distance from the ground up would you like clear of branches for maintaining a view?

Miri

Hello Thanh,

Thank you for the additional information. You mention 12 feet in height, but not which question that was addressing...the minimum height you want no branches in the way, or the desired mature height of the evergreen in total? Since you originally mentioned "tall tree trunks," we'll assume that was referring to lower branch clearance. A plant having that much clear trunk space will probably grow to be at least two or three stories tall, is that okay?

The prior holly could have been a slender-growing cultivar, or just in less-than-stellar health. Shade alone won't cause an American Holly (Ilex opaca, the main species native to Maryland), or most other hollies, to produce sparse growth or slender branching.

There aren't many species that fit the criteria you have in mind, and the deer issue will unfortunately narrow-down the list of candidate plants even more, unless a plant can be protected from browsing (on the lower branches, at least, until it's tall enough to be out of reach). We'll list species that are less appealing to deer, but as you noted, nothing is foolproof.

Roots will grow deeper than one foot, though the majority of tree and shrub roots will be in the top two feet of soil depth. The top foot might trend dry, but it's hard to say what lies below that in terms of moisture.

• Bayberry / Waxmyrtle (Myrica or Morella as the genus, since it was reclassified at some point)
  • usually evergreen, though not always (depends on weather plus plant genetics)
  • fairly fast-growing, with multiple trunks or main stems (unless pruned to look like a tree, which would be rare)
  • mature size depends on plant genetics plus growing conditions (nutrient-poor soil or soil low in organic matter can stunt plants, while richer soil can encourage taller growth)
  • more of a shrub than a tree, but can be pruned to look like a tree over time, once it's old enough; therefore, will not reach much more than 12-15 feet tall overall, so won't have 12 feet of trunk space clear because it's not that large of a plant
• Sweetbay Magnolia (Magnolia virginiana)
  • suitable IF the subsoil is wetter than the surface, as this species is found throughout Maryland's coastal plain
  • usually evergreen, but to what degree depends on individual plant genetics plus the weather (some cultivars are more reliably evergreen then others)
  • fairly fast-growing, with multiple trunks (unless pruned to one trunk by the nursery, which is uncommon but not unheard of)
  • thin bark will definitely need protection from deer antler rubbing
• Pine: Virginia Pine (Pinus virginiana), Shortleaf Pine (Pinus echinata), or Loblolly Pine (Pinus taeda) are native
  • may be hard to find, since nurseries tend to carry Eastern White Pine, a species not well-suited to that habitat
  • there are cultivars of Virginia Pine (not sure about the others) that stay more compact, such as 'Wate's Golden' which matures in the range of 15-40 feet tall, and happens to have yellow-toned foliage in winter (green in summer)
  • non-native Japanese Red Pine (Pinus densiflora cultivar 'Tanyosho' or 'Umbraculifera') tolerates salt exposure (in case that winds-up being an issue in the future) and also tolerates drought; mature shape is a bit umbrella-like, with about a 12-20 foot canopy height at maturity (so, leaving maybe 8 to 10 feet clear of branches, once old enough); cultivar "Dragon's-Eye" or 'Oculus Draconis" has butter-yellow banding on the needles and matures about 10 to 15 feet tall and slightly wider
  • non-native Austrian Pine (Pinus nigra) is also drought- and salt-tolerant, and the straight species grows rapidly to 50+ feet tall
• Atlantic Whitecedar (Chamaecyparis thyoides)
  • native, but can be hard to find, especially as the wild type and not a dwarf cultivar
  • like most needled evergreens, will retain lower branches unless they are pruned off, and once removed, they will not grow back
  • in the wild, grows along freshwater streams or bogs, so may not be highly tolerant of drought (amending sandy soil with compost can help it to retain moisture and nutrients)
• Southern Magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora)
  • native to our south, but several cultivars are cold-hardy enough to be reliable in our Bay counties
  • can shed leaves year-round, but more pronounced in spring and fall (not to the point that it ever denudes the tree, because it is evergreen, just enough to annoy some gardeners, though its leaves make a handy mulch to leave under the tree)

Miri

You're welcome!

Southern Magnolia flowers in late spring to early summer (May into June, mostly), but can bloom sporadically a bit into July as well. If a tree is not getting enough sun, say if it's shaded by other nearby trees or a building, it might not flower well. They need acidic soil to thrive, but prominent leaf yellowing symptoms would probably arise before insufficient soil acidity had any impact on flowering.

Yes, Magnolias can be pruned to clear the lower trunk of branches, though as with any tree, this process should be gradual and let a young tree mature more first, since lower branch retention helps a young tree thicken its trunk faster. Once removed, they will probably not grow back, not because they can't ever be replaced (as would be the case with most needled evergreen branches), but because those lower areas of trunk will be too shaded by the upper canopy to stimulate new growth. This isn't a problem as long as you're aware that over-pruning by accident might be somewhat permanent.

American Holly (Ilex opaca) would be fine for this use, and it too tends to retain lower branches into older age unless they are pruned off. The main concerns might be its very slow growth rate (despite maturing very tall for a holly, it's among the slowest-paced for its eventual size), and the fact that you said a prior holly tree was removed for some reason (sounded like it got too big?). To make an educated guess, if you wanted an American Holly tree to have the bottom ten feet clear of branches for preserving a view, that holly tree might need to be at least 20-30 years old in order to be tall enough to afford being able to lose that much growth to pruning. As with Yaupon Hollies, male and female flowers will be produced on separate plants, so somewhere in the yard (unless there is a male American Holly in the wild nearby) there will need to be a male tree to pollinate a female tree where you wish to have berries for aesthetic or wildlife value.

Evergreen needles do not need to be removed; they can serve as an effective weed-suppressing, free mulch underneath the tree, unless you wanted to grow perennials or other plants underneath it where they might be covered by too much debris. (Too much for aesthetics, that is...it won't actually smother their roots.)

Miri

Citrus plants grow best if they can spend the summer outside (if you have the space), since they prosper with the improved light levels, air circulation, and higher humidity. In late spring, after frosty nights have passed, plants can be set out into a shady spot and acclimated gradually to direct sun until they receive at least a half-day or so of sun. They can stay outside until autumn sometime, perhaps October or so when overnight temps approach freezing again. This will also help the plant to store energy in its roots and branches to help it survive the lower-light and less-than-ideal conditions of a winter spent indoors. An exception might be if the plants are provided a greenhouse to overwinter in.

Lemon juice is not a fungicide, nor is it necessarily beneficial to wipe leaves off with, even though it comes from a related plant in this case. A very acidic substance might also damage the surface of the leaf, which includes a protective wax layer that reduces the risk of infection and drying-out in low humidity. For the future, a suspected ailment should be diagnosed first before being treated, so if a treatment is needed at all (it may not be), the proper remedy is used to resolve the issue.

In this case, the leaf spotting does not look fungal, nor do we see indications of a pest or a disease on the leaf underside pictured. It might be a nutrient deficiency or general stress, especially if the plant's soil is not acidic enough, if it's being watered too often, or if the plant hasn't been fertilized much this growing season (spring/summer). Was any fertilizer used in the past few months, and if so, what kind? Some formulations of citrus fertilizer have slightly higher levels of iron since it's not uncommon for this nutrient to need supplementation when citrus are grown in containers, though any formulation of general-purpose fertilizer that contains nutrients beyond just the N-P-K will probably suffice.

Citrus prefer to have their soil on the drier side between waterings, which has the advantage of preventing the nutrients in the soil from leaching out and being lost as quickly. If the plant is kept on a saucer to contain drips, make sure this does not collect water after watering the plant (simply empty it into the sink) so the soil does not stay too wet. Wet roots can decay, which will lead to even less nutrient absorption (among other issues), exacerbating any leaf yellowing or shedding.

We do not have information specific to issues of pandan plants, and the symptoms pictured are hard to diagnose. They might be a very minor fungal or bacterial infection. Are the leaves of this or the citrus misted with water at any time to try to boost humidity (which doesn't work well)? If so, leaf wetness can make foliage more vulnerable to infection. Drifting mist from products used near the plants, like glass cleaner on a nearby window, can also "burn" foliage.

For now, just monitor the plants without treatment, and if symptoms worsen or change dramatically, feel free to submit additional photos.

Miri

You're welcome!