Hedera helix
Habit | vine-climber
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Lifespan: | ⌛ | perennial |
Features: | ✓ | evergreen |
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Hedera > |
helix > |
Hedera helix (species name from Ancient Greek "twist, turn"), also called Ivy, Common Ivy, or English Ivy is a species of ivy native to most of Europe and southwest Asia. It is an evergreen climbing plant, growing to 20-30 m high where suitable surfaces (trees, cliffs, walls) are available, and also growing as ground cover where there are no vertical surfaces. It holds on to tree bark and rock by means of short adhesive rootlets. The helix part of the name refers to where there are spirals in the leaves.
ExpandRead about Hedera helix in the Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture
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Cultivation
Ivy is a very easily grown plant that dislikes waterlogged, very dry or very acid soils but otherwise succeeds in all soil types1 17 238. It grows well in heavy clay soils. Prefers some lime in the soil. Tolerates very dense shadeTemplate:Pfaf24 Template:Pfaf31, though it may not flower in such a positionk. The plant is very hardy and tolerant of atmospheric pollutionTemplate:Pfaf4. Established plants are drought tolerantTemplate:Pfaf190. A very ornamental and hardy plantTemplate:Pfaf190, it tolerates temperatures down to about -25°c184. There are many named varietiesTemplate:Pfaf190, the variegated forms are less hardy than the species and also require more light238. Ivy is a rampant climbing plant, clinging by means of aerial roots and often trailing on the ground in woods and hedgesTemplate:Pfaf186. It is of benefit rather than harm when growing on a wall because it keeps the wall dry and acts as an insulation11 Template:Pfaf24. It does not damage the structure of a wall. Similarly, it does not harm large trees when climbing into them, though it can shade out smaller and ailing treesRH. It is not a parasitic plant, but instead obtains all its nutrient from the sun and the soilTemplate:Pfaf186. A very good plant for wild-life, it provides dense shelter for birds, spiders etc, an abundant late supply of nectar for insects and a supply of seeds for winter foodTemplate:Pfaf4 Template:Pfaf24 Template:Pfaf186. It is a food plant for the larvae of many species of butterflyTemplate:Pfaf24 30. A very variable plant, there are many named varieties. This species is notably resistant to honey fungusRH.
Propagation
Seed - remove the flesh, which inhibits germination, and sow the seed in spring in a cold frame113. Four weeks cold stratification will improve germination113. When they are large enough to handle, prick the seedlings out into individual pots and grow them on in the cold frame for their first winter. Plant them out into their permanent positions in late spring or early summer, after the last expected frosts. Cuttings of half-ripe wood, July/August in a shady position in a frame. Good percentage78. Cuttings of mature wood, 12cm long, November in a cold frame78. Layering. Plants often do this naturally.
Pests and diseases
Varieties
- 'Digitata' - This variety is especially useful for growing along fences to form a hedgeRH.
- 'Hibernica' - This cultivar has been especially mentioned for its use as a ground cover plant beneath trees11 Template:Pfaf190.
- 'Lutzii' - This cultivar has been especially mentioned for its use as a ground cover plantTemplate:Pfaf190.
- 'Neilsonii' - This cultivar has been especially mentioned for its use as a ground cover plantTemplate:Pfaf190.
Plants in southeast Europe and southwest Asia (Greece, Turkey) are treated as a distinct subspecies Hedera helix subsp. poetarum, differing in orange ripe fruit.
The closely related species Hedera canariensis and Hedera hibernica are often treated as varieties or subspecies of H. helix (Flora Europaea), though they differ in chromosome number so do not hybridise readily (McAllister 1982). H. helix can be best distinguished by its usually smaller and slightly more deeply lobed leaves and somewhat less vigorous growth, though identification is often not easy.
Gallery
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References
- http://www.pfaf.org/database/plants.php?Hedera+helix
- w:Hedera helix. Some of the material on this page may be from Wikipedia, under the Creative Commons license.
- Hedera helix QR Code (Size 50, 100, 200, 500)
- Standard Cyclopedia of Horticulture, by L. H. Bailey, MacMillan Co., 1963
External links