Abstract: In this paper，two years old seedlings of Ilex aquifolium，two hybrids of Ilex aquifolium (Ilex × altaclerensis‘Belgica Aurea’，Ilex × altaclerensis‘Lawsoniana’) and two varieties of Ilex aquifolium (Ilex aquifolium.‘Madame Briot’，Ilex aquifolium‘Little Gem’) were placed in different low temperature conditions， the morphological characteristics，relative conductivity，the activity of superoxide (SOD)，the level of malondialdehyde (MDA)，the contents of soluble sugar and chlorophyll were studied. Comprehensive evaluation of cold resistance on five kinds of plants was conducted by principal component analysis and subordinate function analysis. The results revealed that cold resistance of five kinds of plants from strong to weak was Ilex×altaclerensis ‘Belgica Aurea’>Ilex aquifolium ‘Little Gem’>Ilex aquifolium>Ilex aquifolium. ‘Madame Briot’>Ilex×altaclerensis ‘Lawsoniana’.

Key words: Ilex aquifolium, low-temperature stress, physiological response, cold resistance, comprehensive evaluation