I would like to know the name of this nice small tree. The pic was taken in Cutigliano, Tuscany, at 877 metres above the sea level. Thanks in advance.
Please can you add a bigger pic to this thread. http://www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/forums/showthread.php?t=725
Thanks, I was mislead by its leaves: usually they have leaves with spines. I found a cultivar , 'J.C. van Tol', that might match the one I posted.
I think this may be Heteromeles arbutifolia Toyon...that would make more sense if you saw this in tuscany. It is a native tree here in California which is also a mediterranean climate.
Common (English) holly. Non-prickly leaves are frequent on older growth, the spines being a protection from browsers displayed by seedlings and sprouts near the ground or trunk. Vegetatively propagated cultivars vary in spininess.
Ditto to Holly Ilex aquifolium. Toyon has its berries in corymbs (stalked clusters), not tightly along the shoots like this.
Yes: Heteromeles is a very different rose family tree similar to Photinia, with serrated leaves and terminal inflorescences.