Learn why english ivy is so difficult to control and join fellow residents to FREE THE TREES and help rid our trees of invasive English ivy.
Ivy growing up trees can cover branches, preventing leaf-out in the trees, eventually killing them.
The weight of mature vines can make infested trees top heavy and susceptible to blow-over during storms.
English ivy can transmit bacterial leaf scorch, which threatens native elms, oaks, and maples.
English ivy aggressively creeps beyond its intended space into neighboring yards, fences, parks, and forests.
Mature vines climbing trees, walls or fences produce seeds, which birds disperse to other areas.
Ivy-covered slopes are susceptible to erosion. English ivy has shallow roots, and it prevents the growth of native plants with deeper roots that are more effective bank stabilizers.
Ivy's dense, evergreen growth smothers native plants, preventing preventing seeds from sprouting and sunlight from reaching new leaves.
USEFUL TOOLS: pruners, loppers, a portable saw for thick vines, a forked tool to pull multiple vines from the ground, elbow grease and gloved hands!
Cut the stems of English ivy with pruner or loppers all the way around the tree trunk. Clear a section around the trunk at least a foot wide, being careful not to damage the bark. Large vines may require a saw, but again, be careful not to damage the tree’s bark. Ivy dangling on the tree above the cut will eventually dry up and fall down.
Pull English ivy from a 3 to 6-foot circle around the base of the tree, pulling out as many roots as you can. Freeing this area of ivy will stop it from climbing back up the trunk.
Use of chemical herbicides: To kill vines that are too large to uproot, paint the cut stumps of ivy with glyphosate or triclopyr. This may kill vines’ roots, but only if applied in warm weather (50s or higher) immediately after cutting. BE CAREFUL NOT TO GET ANY OF THE HERBICIDE ON THE TREE TRUNK OR ON NEARBY NATIVE PLANTS.
Dispose of English ivy in a hot, active compost pile or in a sealed trash bag. DO NOT JUST TOSS ENGLISH IVY ONTO THE GROUND. The cut vines will continue to grow and spread.
Replant with native groundcovers in the 3 to 6-foot area around the base of the tree. Using small plugs or seeds will minimize disturbance to the tree's critical root zone.
To keep ivy from growing back, replant with natives!
Perennial ground cover options include: mayapple, foamflower, creeping phlox, wild blue phlox, white wood aster, bigleaf aster, blue wood aster, smooth aster, New York aster.
Evergreen and semi-evergreens options include: moss phlox, partridgeberry, checkerberry, wintergreen (teaberry), bearberry, Allegheny spurge (native pachysandra), golden ragwort, Appalachian barren strawberry, green-and-gold, Christmas fern, marginal woodfern, blue wood sedge, Pennsylvania sedge, bristleleaf sedge, seersucker sedge, silver sedge, creeping sedge ‘Bunny Blue’, wild ginger.
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