Ning Qing 1: A New Holly Cultivar With Broadly Ovate Leaf Morphology

Ilex L. (holly), Aquifoliaceae, represents the largest woody dioecious genus within the angiosperm phylum. Ilex species are primarily cultivated for their ornamental and pharmaceutical properties (Yao et al. 2022; Zhou et al. 2022). There are ∼700 deciduous and evergreen trees or shrubs in the Ilex genus, distributed globally from tropical to temperate regions. China, in particular, nourishes more than 200 documented species (Cuénoud et al. 2000; Su et al. 2020; Yao et al. 2020). Although hundreds of species exist in the genus Ilex, their flowers and fruits are fairly uniform compared with their leaves (Yao et al. 2016). Ilex leaves are diverse in terms of texture, shape, size, color, and margins, and these characteristics significantly contribute to their germplasm identification and commercial values (Chong et al. 2022). Ilex dabieshanensis ‘Ning Qing 3’ is a unique cultivar for its peculiar oblong leaf morphology (Chong et al. 2023).