Why ivy became a less-favored ground cover
er. This is a contemporary viewpoint, as English ivy was once considered an elegant element in American gardens that looked to English and European garden traditions.
Rock Creek Park is an example of a natural area at high risk of invasive exotic plants once used commonly as garden staples, because the park is close to hundreds of homes. “A lot of areas we are working in, you can look across the street and see the ivy growing up somebody’s hill. All the trees on the property have vines growing up,” Maleri said. “It’s very apparent where the ivy is coming from.”
Maleri’s group has been able “to educate park users to steer them away from English ivy. The less people plant it, the less of an issue in the park down the road,” he said. Ivy is listed as a noxious weed in the Pacific Northwest, where its sale has been restricted.
If you have ivy as a ground cover, the simple act of keeping it in bounds with occasional clipping will stop it from spreading. On a wall or fence, the same maintenance approach will work. If it is growing up a tree, remove it.
In spite of ivy’s environmental risks, some gardeners feel ivy still has a place in certain situations and can be used without creating a problem. There are certain variegated varieties in particular that can brighten a wall or pillar in a gloomy corner where little else will grow.
These tend to be slower-growing and more tender than green types and, if kept in check, don’t present an environmental threat. One of them, a variety of Algerian ivy named Gloire de Marengo, is particularly handsome, appearing splashed in a tapestry of green, silver and cream. Classic variegated varieties include Gold Heart, Buttercup, Goldchild and Gold Baby.
Tony Avent, owner of Plant Delights Nursery in Raleigh, N.C., stopped selling ivy not because of its ecological issues but because it was a bully in the garden. Still, he thinks ivy is “fantastic” in the right setting. “It’s all about how it’s used and how it’s managed,” he said. However, he can think of many alternatives for the shade garden, including evergreen ferns, wild gingers, hellebores, mondo grass, a little-known evergreen shrub named ruscus, and the native partridge berry.
Ivies are effective trailing plants in containers and baskets in shady patios and can be used in winter pots along with such things as boxwood, pansies and dwarf conifers. In such a setting, the ivy would not get out of hand.