Linda, Without a photo it is impossable to tell what ilex you have, but just shooting off my hip by your description I will guess it is a variety of Ilex x meserveae. It's very wide with long leggy branches and has a wide opening in the middle and back due to the branches being way too long and leggy. Again I am speculating not knowing the variety but the wide opening is not due to lack of pruning it is more likely winter damage and the long leggy branches are the result of the shrub growing into its natural form. One of the wonderful things about hollies is they love to be pruned and you can do this year round (most folks will waite until the holiday season and use their cuttings in seasonal displays.) I would strongly suggest you determine what type of holly you have and deceide whether its sited correctly...after all what is the point of having a shrub growing where you have to constantly shear it into a form that is not natural for the plant. kt

I have to backtrack a little and explain that when I planted the first set of trees, I was a COMPLETE newbie. I did not even have the soaker hose down at that point. I was watering them by hand about once a week thinking that would be enough. The soaker hose is that flat fabric kind and I've got two of them connected to a "Y" at the edge of my house...one length that goes down the side of the house is 25 feet, the other length goes toward the yard 50 feet. Together they make a 75 foot run and I read that a length under 100 feet should not be an issue where equal pressure is concerned...am I wrong? There is no "incline" along the length where the water ever has to go uphill, that is an optical illusion. From where the water enters the hose it only goes downhill slightly. I've been using this soaker hose all summer and it seems to do the job well, although I had to use it every day since I did not have time to put mulch down until this fall. I am thinking the reason the first batch died was from obvious lack of water before going into winter and then drying out by spring. Also not having mulch might have been a factor since we got down to -5 last winter. I have a hunch that the drying winds knocked out most of them, since my few survivors were the ones next to the house where they are somewhat protected. Which leads me to another question... What do you think of Wilt-Pruf? Could I prevent some dessication by using it? I was going to go with burlap but that is an awful lot that I would need to wrap...do these even need protection from wind if they get enough water before winter? I think in the spring I will move the one arb with the dead branch to the end of the line and replace it so I can keep the height I have going in that area (I need it there! I don't think want a window in my hedge..haha).

San Marcos indicates this plant is somewhat frost-tender, so I'd wait until it is likely your danger of frost is past, simply to avoid burning extra tender new growth. So, late winter would probably be a good time. Your plant was likely produced in ideal conditions with large amounts of fertilizer, so it took off fast when it got into the ground at your home. Which is great! Do not worry if you lose some flowers---it is often better to lose some flowers in favor of getting a plant well-shaped at a young age. Think long-term health.

How much space do I need to give them? They will eventually want to get 15 to 20 feet wide and about as tall unless you espalier or do other planer pruning along the wall. Looks enough like yaupon to me to think your builder probably has it right. Most of the 20+ year old ones in our neighborhood have been trained as multi-trunk trees, but have seen single trunk used nicely more often in newer plantings. Could help to know the gender of your plants before you move them - there's a small chance the builder/nursery might know. Berries on the females change the look (improve, imho) and would be nice to have matching plants, male or female, anywhere you may be wanting some symmetry.