Why does ivy grow on buildings

Hyde Hall Essex. Rosemoor Devon. Wisley Surrey. Bridgewater Greater Manchester. Environmentally friendly gardening. Plant health. Take part in our research. Meet the team. Shop plants rhsplants. Shopping with the RHS. RHS Christmas gifts. Help us achieve our goals Make a donation.

Join the RHS today and support our charity Join now. Save to My scrapbook. Ivy on house walls and in gutters. Quick facts. Common name Common ivy or English ivy Botanical name Hedera helix Areas affected Fences, walls and buildings Main causes Woody climber with fast, dense growth Timing Seen year round; treat accordingly.

Jump to What is ivy? What is ivy? Appearance Ivy is recognised by its dense, evergreen foliage. The problem Self-clinging climbers such as Boston ivy and Virginia creeper Parthenocissus sp. Where brickwork is sound, the main problem is to keep growth away from gutters and paint work. Cultural control Where possible, use non-chemical methods. Thanks for sharing Andrea! Such a beautiful pictures you have shared. Really amazing I love nature and want to surround near the greenery. I love the Houston, Texas which is amazing one.

I also had always adored the look and allure of ivy covered houses…….. He also knew that many of them were still alive and hiding amongst the rafters!!!! Can you imagine that!!!! When he went downstairs and reported this to the homeowners, they said they had loved their house for 25 years and this was an unimaginable shock. Needless to say, I have never looked at ivy covered homes the same dreamy way again. I bet no one sitting in that class ever have either. What a beautiful post.

In college, a couple of girlfriends and I rented an old two-story home covered in ivy maybe, Virginia Creeper? The home had not been updated and still had the original single-paned windows. In addition to making the home extremely difficult to heat, the old windows allowed colonies of ants to climb up the ivy and into our second story windows. Definitely a nuisance, but like many others, I thought it looked charming.

With an updated, well sealed home, ivy could make a lovely feature. Thanks for the article. Found your lovely pics while researching creeping fig that a prior owner planted on the brickwork of our home. Reasons for not doing it are many. It was a constant up-keep in the summer. It grows fast, if not kept up it will grow over your roof and windows.

It grew behind the trim on our front door and was coming inside the house. Also the birds were building there nests in it, making a real mess. Still love the look but not on my house. Your email address will not be published. Sign up for email delivery and never miss a post! A French chateau in La Chapelle-sur-Dun. David Easton. Llanrwst, Wales. Thank you for this post! Ooh Andrea! Thank you for a wonderful and informative post! So I guess the correct answer is you want to be sure you want it on there because even if you have great brick it will never look nice again once Ivy has grown up on it and attached itself for a while.

Ivy looks so beautiful growing on old brick homes, it is a shame really that you need to avoid growing ivy there. I have been looking into buying homes and our realtor took us to an older home with ivy growing on the walls. Is there anyway to keep the ivy even though it is an older home without ruining the home? I have an ivy that grows every year on my south facing wood siding wall. It has little white berries in mid summer. I have pulled up a few to transplant them and the root is more like a bulb.

Not sure what species it is but i would like to get more of these if i can find out what it is. I moved into a house with a well established garden. Birds have spread the ivy to invade every garden bed and probably my neighbours gardens too. It has climbed into the window frames, spoilt the brickwork of my house, and is a bigger pest than weeds surviving with no intentional watering. This conversation is too general. There are different types: English, Boston, and Virginia Creeper are just 3 of the most popular on brick houses.

English ivy use tendrils which will go into and damage mortar especially on older homes. I have lived in a brick home in Ohio for 30 years and have had Boston Ivy all over my home and have not had problems with the mortar. Boston Ivy uses little suction cups to adhere. The biggest issue I have is that it is great cover for field mice to crawl up and and enter at the Attic level and get in my house.

Never ending battle. My house is cedar siding. Just found English ivy growing on the back of the house. Weather has been so rainy it has just exploded. I like the way it looks but, from reading, I take it that damage will be done if allowed to grow. Just tell me if I need to remove it or if there is a way to keep it. As a thermal screen it buffers extremes of temperature at the surface of the building and also diminishes the detrimental effect of pollution. However, while self-clinging climbers do not require training or wires, they still need management.

Special subscription offer. Discover some of the most glorious gardens from around the world. Find out more. Already have an account with us?