ivy crowds plant roots

15 years ago

I have all these mature shrubs: butterfly, azalea, and others. The ivy covers the ground, wraps around the roots, goes up the stems.

Last year I noticed a lot of mold or fungus on the plants. And one of my plants now has brown spots.

I think the ivy is smothering them. Am I right?

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Comments (7)

libbyshome
15 years ago
Ivy will kill anything it grows on even large trees.
A terribly invasive plant.
I'd get rid of it immediately.

Libby
newbiehavinfun
15 years ago
buddyrose,

Getting rid of English ivy is no joke. DH and I are still trying to wrangle with it. When we bought our house we had at least 1/2 acre of ivy, growing up trees and basically smothering everything in its path. Ivy has glossy leaves that repel any herbicide, so you have to get creative. Here's what you have to do:

1. Cut the vines (the woody part) and spray Roundup into the stems. If it's growing on other plants, be careful not to spray on the leaves of those other plants.

OR

2. Use a weedwacker on the leaves so that they are cut. Immediately spray with Roundup.

The ivy will get brown and die within a few days. Any parts that survive, repeat the procedure. Once the ivy has been cleared, better alternatives are ajuga (semi-evergreen), vinca, pachysandra (evergreen), and even Boston ivy is better (but not evergreen).

Good luck!

Megan
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Thanks to all for the replies. kato_b: I don't think grass would work. It's kind of an awkward area, which is probably why someone planted ivy there. There's a rock retaining wall at the back of it, cement stairs and sidewalk boardering it on one side, a cement sidewalk with raised cement border at the front and a cement slab boardering on the neighbor's side. It's also sloped. I'm reluctant to plant anything there because we've been battling poison ivy in that area all spring and I think it will continue because the neighbor isn't controlling it on her side. I don't have the patience to keep killing it off while dealing with desirable plants in the area. Is the main problem with landscape rocks dealing with the debris that gathers in there and trying to keep it looking tidy? Does plastic make it worse? Does using larger landscape rocks - like medium sized river rocks - make the problem better or worse? Wood mulch could work but I'm afraid it might tend to wash away because of the slope. Maybe I'll just let whatever the neighbor has on her side take over (except the evil poison ivy) and move on to the multitude of other projects we have to complete this summer. Gotta pick your battles. You know, gardenweb should start a forum with tips on how to live in peace with difficult neighbors who share a property line. This neighbor just cut down 3/4 of an old evergreen shrub that was on the line and left the mutilated remains on my side for me to deal with. Is that passive-aggressive or what! It's going to be a long summer.
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It IS the bane of MY existence and has been ever since I STUPIDLY planted it 18 years ago. It's Hedera Helix. It grows UNDER the patio and comes out the other side, then goes under the fence where I have since planted many clematis vines, therefore cannot spray Round-Up or any other weed killer. I rip as much as possible when I can see it well - in Spring and Fall after everything else has died back - then I use a product called 'Vinex' (you can google it - I had to buy it online but I hear ACE hardware carries it). But you must be very careful with it because it will kill everything it touches including 100 year old trees (eventually). I use the little 'paintbrush' tip on the container and apply to the end of the vine - pulling it back as far as I can until I can no longer get any out of the ground - then paint Vinex on it (about a half-inch of the vine). But if you are successful -- and it will not happen fast -- your neighbors will no longer have it either. The other major mistake of my life was Boston Ivy. And Trumpet Vine. And Sweet Autumn Clematis - which grew under the house and came out the other side. I need to move. Westy
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buddyrose
Original Author
15 years ago
One whole side of my yard is covered in ivy. the trees behind my property, the ivy is all the way up their trunks. It might be a losing battle, Megan, but I'm going to try to win it. Here's a couple of photos . there's a lot of ivy.

{{gwi:680429}}

{{gwi:234188}}
natalie4b
15 years ago
Buddyrose,

your patio, white gate, and water feature are fantastic! Love the stepping stones, too. Beautiful!!
buddyrose
Original Author
14 years ago
thanks natalie. it is a gorgeous garden that I inherited when I bought the cottage. I love it so much. I wouldn't change a thing except for the ivy crowding the plants. Other than that. perfect! ha.
brpinson
14 years ago
Fought the same ivy battle and finally won...a hint on the round-up..mature foliage has a waxy coating that makes it hard for the Round-up to work effectively...the new spring growth does not have this coating and is way more responsive to the round-up. It takes time to get rid of it, but everything does much better without the ivy. Also deer (here) love ivy and it was a magnet to get deer in garden (where of course they subsequently sampled everything else).
buddyrose
Original Author
13 years ago
NO MORE IVY. After two years of ripping it all out it's finally gone. And so is the waterfall and pond and that red round patio. I wanted to put up a privacy fence and the waterfall was leaning against the chicken wire fence so it all went. And I never liked the red patio.

Here are some photos of what my yard looks like now.

{{gwi:680431}}

{{gwi:680432}}

{{gwi:680433}}

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ivy crowds plant roots

Comments (7)

libbyshome

newbiehavinfun

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ivy crowds plant roots

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libbyshome

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