Holly

Holly, any of various species of evergreen trees and shrubs (genus Ilex) with glossy, spiny leaves and red or black fruits, usually called berries. The European holly (I. acquifolium), used at Christmas and in early pagan ritual, is very similar to the common American holly (I. opaca), but there are some species in the Americas that are not evergreen and not spiny. Yaupon (I. vomitoria), a holly of the southeastern states, has leaves containing large amounts of caffeine and was used by Native Americans to induce vomiting. The leaves of South American maté (I. paraguayensis) are dried and used to make maté tea.