

At the same time, the Italian Cypress has a sharp tip like the tip of a spear. Occasionally, competing central stems may appear, but they rarely reach the size of the main trunk.Īs a result of the multi-stem structure, Sky Pencil Holly has a blunted tip.

On the other hand, Italian Cypress has one central trunk from which the side branches branch off. This means that there is no distinct central trunk, but instead several trunks of varying thickness. Sky Pencil Holly has a multi-trunk structure. Of course, both plants have a strict columnar shape, but even here there are differences. The next distinguishing feature of Sky Pencil Holly and Italian Cypress is the shape.

Secondly, you will achieve privacy much faster because of the faster growth rate. First of all, because you need fewer plants to get a dense screen. So if you’re looking for a hedge plant, Italian Cypress is a much better choice. Whereas Sky Pencil Holly grows 6 to 8 inches a year, but if you feed it, it will grow 10 inches a year. Italian Cypress grows much faster, with an annual growth rate of 1-2 feet. The growth rate of both plants is also very different. But the width is not much greater than its competitor, averaging 5 to 6 feet, rarely 8 feet. The Italian Cypress easily reaches 40 feet in height and under ideal conditions can even exceed that mark. Sky Pencil Holly is much shorter than its competitor, rarely exceeding 10 feet in height. Once it is well established, drought won’t bother it at all.Sky Pencil Holly and Italian Cypress Italian Cypress higher than Sky Pencil HollyĪs I mentioned earlier, the size of both plants is fundamentally different. Sky Pencil Holly will best acclimate to your soil and climate if you water it regularly the first year. Watering after you finish planting may not be able to reach all the roots. You don’t want to shock the plant while it is adapting to your environment. Keep it shorter by keeping it sheared to the size your want.Īlways saturate the root ball completely when you plant new Holly Shrubs in your yard. Sky Pencils will someday reach 10-feet tall. Not only for appearance, but also to allow your new columnar evergreen to stay full. It will be best to keep the top growth sheared of flat. The Sky Pencil Japanese Holly stays straight and narrow naturally. By keeping your hollies well fed the first season you also increase the rate of drought tolerance. To get increased foliage growth, you need more roots first.

If you treat your Sky Pencil with an application of acid fertilizer like Holly-Tone, it will grow even faster in your yard. G ive your new landscape holly an added boost when you plant it. Adding some compost or humus to the soil is always a good way to assist your holly bush to root out with lightning speed. This will let the roots spread faster without having to put a lot of muscle into the effort. Dig it twice as deep and twice as wide as the root ball.īe sure to really make the ground soil loose. Sky Pencil Holly will be drought tolerant faster if you prep your planting hole right.
SKY PENCIL HOLLY GROWTH RATE PER YEAR FULL
Just be sure to pick a planting spot in full sun for the best appearance vigorous growth. You’re going to love this easy-to-grow Ilex.
