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Photo Credit: Jan Samanek, Phytosanitary Administration, Bugwood.org -
Photo Credit: Jan Samanek, Phytosanitary Administration, Bugwood.org -
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Species include:
- English Ivy (Hedera helix)
- Irish Ivy (Hedera hibernica) also called Atlantic ivy
English ivy is a plant that many people seem to love. But it’s really a plant that people should hate! While it is appreciated in landscaping as an ornamental, evergreen groundcover, its ability to aggressively escape home gardens and dominate habitats makes it sinister in parks, natural areas, and forestlands. Because of their similar appearance and environmental impact, English and Irish ivy are often described together and controlled in the same manner.
Description:
| Life Cycle: | Perennial (life cycle lasts more than one year) |
| Early Detection and Rapid Response species: | No |
| Height: | This climbing vine can reach the canopy of mature trees, nearly 99 feet (30 meters) in the air. |
| Leaf Description: | The leaves come in two forms: juvenile and mature. Both leaves are evergreen, leathery and alternate along the vines. Juvenile leaves are lobed while mature leaves are larger and pointed with no lobes. |
| Fruit & Flower Description: | When light and nutrients allow, small, greenish white flowers are formed that produce purple-black berries. |
| Bloom Time: | Fall |
Habitat:
- Ivy prefers moist soils in areas with summer shade and winter sunlight.
- It grows in a variety of landscapes including woodlands, forests, riparian areasAreas that are directly adjacent to flowing streams, creeks, or rivers., and disturbed habitats.
Impact:
- Ivy is an aggressive invader that can quickly outcompete native plants for light, nutrients, soil, and space creating “ivy deserts.”
- This results in greater chances of erosion, as deep-rooted native plants are replaced by the shallower rooted ivy.
- Trees covered in ivy are at risk of being toppled, due to the immense weight of the vines.
- Consuming large amounts of leaves and fruits can be mildly toxic to people and cattle.
What you can do about it:
- Manual treatment of ivy is labor intensive, but if done correctly, can prove effective and fulfilling.
- Plants are easier to pull out of the ground when the soil is damp from rain. In Washington County, fall through spring is a great time to treat ivy.
- To control ground ivy, pull vines from one end and begin rolling it into a ball. Make sure to place the ivy balls onto a tarp to dry out completely and prevent re-rooting. Once vines dry out, they will not be able to re-establish and can be composted on site.
- In the case of climbing ivy, cut its stems at chest height down to the base of the tree, creating a gap on the tree trunk. It will take some time, but the remaining stems will slowly die and fall off. Do not pull the remaining ivy from the tree as this can dislodge tree branches and damage tree bark.
Look Alikes:
English and Irish ivy are often confused with another invasive weed, old man’s beard (Clematis vitalba). Old man’s beard has very different leaves and flowers than English ivy. Old man’s beard’s flowers are larger and white, whereas English ivy’s flowers are green.
Noxious Weed Listing:
| State of Oregon: | Class B |
| State of Washington: | Class C |
More Resources:
Download English Ivy Best Management Practices factsheet
- Pacific Northwest Weed Management Handbook: Common or English ivy
- University of California, Weed Research & Information Center: English, Algerian, and Atlantic ivy