Poor old Ivy. The old girl’s got her name up there, in the Garden section, under “Climbers”. But she’s been totally ignored.
Is she taken for granted? Is she just “there”? Does no-one ever notice?
Poor Ivy is the wallflower at the gardening hootenanny. ... Read review
Advantages: Will grow anywhere, tends to be clingy, probably 'cos she feels ignored. Disadvantages: Gets a bit rampant, and needs a firm hand now and again.
...notice?
Poor Ivy is the wallflower at the gardening hootenanny. Always in the background, hugging a wall, waiting and hoping to be discovered.
Well, tonight’s Ivy’s night. Always the sucker for a sob story, Aspen goes steaming in to rescue poor Ivy from life on the shelf.
The genus Hedera is not confined to that dull green pointy-leaved climber which blocks your guttering and invades ... ...they confined to growing upwards. Ivy will make an excellent ground cover, too.
Let’s look firstly at some of the misconceptions surrounding much-maligned Ivy.
The most familiar incarnation of this grand old lady is climbing up your wall. In common with only a very few climbers, Ivy needs no support. And it is this self-clinging ability which has given Ivy a bad press. Yes, she will produce aerial roots which will ... more
Poor old Ivy. The old girl’s got her name up there, in the Garden section, under “Climbers”. But she’s been totally ignored.
Is she taken for granted? Is she just “there”? Does no-one ever notice?
Poor Ivy is the wallflower at the gardening hootenanny. Always in the background, hugging a wall, waiting and hoping to be discovered.
Well, tonight’s Ivy’s night. Always the sucker for a sob story, Aspen goes steaming in to rescue poor Ivy from life on the shelf.
The genus Hedera is not confined to that dull green pointy-leaved climber which blocks your guttering and invades your roof-space. True, they are all climbers. True, given the chance, they will all clog your guttering. But variegations abound, with creams, silvers and golds conspiring to produce a decorative disguise for that unsightly fence or crumbling wall. Nor are they confined to growing upwards. Ivy will make an excellent ground cover, too.
Let’s look firstly at some of the misconceptions surrounding much-maligned Ivy.
The most familiar incarnation of this grand old lady is climbing up your wall. In common with only a very few climbers, Ivy needs no support. And it is this self-clinging ability which has given Ivy a bad press. Yes, she will produce aerial roots which will penetrate the mortar of your joints. But only if your joints are already in a state of decay.
Debunking of Myth One. – Ivy will not damage a sound wall. Ivy will only accelerate damage to a decaying wall.
And, yes, Ivy will curl around your guttering and penetrate your roof tiles.
Debunking of Myth Two. – Ivy will only knacker your guttering and roof if she has nowhere else to go. Half an hour’s pruning is all it takes to avoid half a year’s salary spent on redoing the roof. Don’t blame Ivy, blame the gardener’s neglect!
Another familiar sight is Ivy scrambling her way up and through a tree. Whoa!! Ivy kills trees! Hack her down! Burn her!
Debunking of Myth Three. – Yes, Ivy is bad for young trees. Ivy grows vigorously once established, and can indeed strangle an immature tree. But a mature tree can cope perfectly well with being clasped to Ivy’s bosom. The two are perfectly compatible.
Enough debunking.
In addition to the above, Ivy will happily hide an ugly fence or wall. She will do so all year round, without complaint, being evergreen. But Ivy is also very suitable as ground cover, and much underused in this respect. She’s a rampant old girl, so best not used in a confined space. But if you have a big garden, or perhaps an unsightly bank or piece of waste ground, plant some shrubs with Ivy underneath. She will quickly cover the bare ground, and smother weeds in the process. Her tendency to climb will have to be curbed of course. But she can easily be kept out of the shrubs with a few judicious snips.
The smaller varieties are excellent additions to hanging baskets and tubs. The greens and golds and creams make a lovely foil for the summer bedding.
Ivy’s Offspring.
Hedera helix Goldheart. This one has small leaves with gold centres.
Hedera colchica Dentata Variegata. Light green leaves with broad creamy margins.
Hedera helix Buttercup. The leaves are pale green in shade, but turn bright yellow in full sun.
Hedera helix Glymii. Leaves are a glossy dark green, but turn a deep reddish-purple in colder weather.
Hedera rhombea. A bit unusual, in that the leaves are unlobed, and is not immediately recognisable as an ivy.
Ivy grows anywhere. I’m not going to bother with the cultivation bit here. Dry, wet, sunny, shady – Ivy doesn’t give a monkeys. Plant her anywhere, and she will grow.
And propagation? There are few plants easier. Break a bit off, shove it in soil or compost, and it will root. Simple as that. Plants for free.
Ivy is an accommodating old girl. She tries to please. Don’t leave her ignored and unloved.
Advantages: easy to grow Disadvantages: can take over
...are poisinous if eaten Ivy can be an skin irritant .
There are several species the plain green leaved one, and ones like gold heart which has a yellow/gold splash of colour in the centre, Another holly has gold edging to its leaves It flowers september to november, berries are to be found November to the spring
Seems to grow in most soils. It is happy in a poor soil. Does not like too much light growing well in shady places
The flowers are an ... ...to eat the berries.
Ivy is also a good roosting and nesting place.Ivy is a very usefull plant to have in your garden if you like wildlife
Ivy grows up many a wall, hedge, fence, or tree.
A small variety is good for a hanging basket. Needs a little pruning or it gets too big and heavy covering its host and smothering it.
Ivy is used a lot for decorations at christmas or for weddings.
Evergreens like the Ivy signify a continuation of life
Ivy ...
mumsymary 08.12.2002 (18.12.2005)
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Ivy
ivy is a very common wood land plant that looks extremely attractive in my garden even if i do say so myself.
there are two different types of ivy, normal ivy, just called ivy in garden centers is most commonly found in wood land in the wild as it likes to have somethin to climb up for support, a tree is an ideal place to plant this in your garden or up a fence pannel, it is a woody ever green climbing plant that flowers from september to november ... ...garden in winter.
ground ivy is the other type of ivy we hve in our garden, this is a trailing plant that covers the ground like a blanket, it produces beautiful flowers from march to june that are a purple to blue colour and is ever green all year round, this ivy prefers damp places so dont plant in direct sun light. ...
billy1970 18.07.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Ivy
Advantages: great trailing plant Disadvantages: none
Ivy is a lovely trailing or climbing plant that will give a lovely bit of greenary to even the dullest part of your garden.
You can buy ivy from garden centers for realy cheap, i payed 59p each for small pieces of ivy which after two years is trailing all over the side of my shed and up onto the roof, you can take your own cuttings by cutting a piece off your ivy plant and using a rooting powder aswell.
Ivy is ever green so will give you a lovely ... ...in the shade constantly.
Ivy doesnt need a lot of watering so you can just keep the soil moist slightly and it will thrive.
Ivy looks lovely on the ground under trees or on old buildings like my shed as it sticks very well to brickwork or fencing.
You could use ivy in your hanging baskets aswell if you wanted to and have it trailing out of the basket but you would need to keep it trimmed as it does grow quite quickly and has a habit of strangling ...
danniell 07.06.2008
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: helpful Review of Ivy
Advantages: Kills Ivy Disadvantages: Kills other things
I must explain initially that I don?t dislike Ivy. In its place it can be very attractive and I have several decorative varieties in containers around the garden. However, in the ?wild? state it can become very invasive especially if, like me, you have a neighbour who encourages it, training it up the house and all along the fence between the gardens. Luckily though, ours is not the house that it is climbing.
The problems it caused in the garden were a different matter. Every time some was removed from the fence on our side, it was met with a great deal of tutting and sighing from the other! The plants (on our side) were getting smothered and there seemed no solution. It is a very difficult plant to remove once it has taken a hold.
However, last year, on a visit to B & Q to check out strimmers as we needed a new one, I ...
Advantages: Beautiful autumn colour and rapid growth Disadvantages: Rapid growth!
Virginia Creeper (Parthenocissus Quinquefolia) is a vigorous climber which is ideal for covering fences, unsightly walls, bin stores, and the like. Its large five-lobed leaves turn a breathtaking wine-red colour in Autumn. It doesn?t need support, as it will cling to anything. It produces tendrils with little suckers on the end which will adhere to just about any surface.
Its close relative, the Boston Ivy (Parthenocissus tricuspidata), will spread even further if left to its own devices.
They are distinctly unfussy in their requirements, although good soil and feeding will make them grow more rapidly. They will do equally well in sun or shade. Prune if necessary in early winter.
If a friend or neighbour has one, try taking hardwood cuttings from well ripened wood in winter. ...
Aspen 11.12.2000 (09.12.2000)
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Advantages: grows anywhere Disadvantages: can take over the whole garden
The Russian vine perhaps better known as the mile a minute to gardeners, is the most rampant climber known to the world ! This climber is fast . If you have an unsightly garage or ugly wall ,plant the Russian vine with it's white flowers in late summer and the wall will soon vanish from view .
The plant is not fussy about where it grows either . It will survive drought , and dampness at the root with equal success .
You will need trellis or a support attached to the wall you are trying to cover because it does not have any suckers to attach itself to walls like Ivy does for example.
But be careful . This plant can and does take over the whole garden . It sometimes appears indestructable and it needs regular pruning to keep it in check .
But it is easy to grow , however don't turn your back not for one minute or you might find ...
Gardenex 11.12.2000 (07.12.2000)
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