The Brooklyn Botanic Garden has a wonderful little book with color photos listing native alternatives to invasive species ... but I left it at my sister-in-law's house last visit, so cannot refer to it now. However, Virginia Native Plant Society has a list of alternatives to hedera helix - link below. I'm sure there are many more alternatives that, while not native, at least are not invasive. The NJ Invasive Species Strike Team has an excellent site with loads of information on invasive species (insects, pathogens, mammals, etc, as well as plants). Their website is www.njisst.org. Their fact sheet on hedera helix is at http://njisst.org/fact-sheets/plants/Hedera_helix_2011.pdf There was English ivy growing here when we bought the house and I left it, along with the "ditch lilies" and Star of Bethlehem, because so little grew in this dry, sandy, shaded yard. Over the years we've improved the soil and now have a delightful garden ... but haven't been able to get rid of the aforementioned plants (I won't resort to using an herbicide). Based on that experience, my advice is don't let them get a foot in the door! Here is a link that might be useful: Alternatives to hedera helix

"It's a political statement and I'm not a troll." Per GardenWeb's TOS, political statements are not to be posted in this type of forum. And, IMO posting this type of "political statement" here is exactly what would make a troll a troll!

Now is a good time. Not much you can do to hurt ivy. If you do it now you should get some new spring growth to make it look less hacked.

Think about it this way: English Ivy could be your friend, but your neighbor's foe. English Ivy is one of my absolute favorite plants. I just can't have enough of it. But please, please, please think of your neighbors when you plant invasives! You might be willing to live with the nature of an invasive plant that you love, but think about your neighbors. I wouldn't want my neighbors to plant things that could, in time, take over my carefully planned garden, so I don't plant things in the ground that could take over their garden. I respect that they have their own plans for their yards, because I want them to respect that I have my own, different plans for my garden. English Ivy is sneaky. It doesn't just jump up and start acting like Napoleon. First year it sleeps, second year it creeps, third year it leaps. It waits until you think it's not so bad and perfectly controllable, then it pounces. Pruning is not enough to control it--it spreads by runners above AND under ground. So you never know where it will pop up (it can pop up several feet or even several yards away from the original plant--which means it can pop up right in a neighbor's yard, and keep popping up there again and again). And it's worse than a mere weed, cause it may not only be unwated, it can also damage property (it can choke trees and other plants, and if left alone because it isn't seen, can latch onto bricks and eventually destroy the bricks and other structures). But, as I mentioned, I love my English Ivy. I grow it in containers (hanging baskets, up a trellis from a window box, etc) over cement (my porches) so that even if it touches the ground (unlikely, but you never know if part will break off) it can't root. And I grow a TON of it in the house as a houseplant. But never, ever, ever in the ground. : )