Selfsufficientish.com

Hello,
I'd like to grow Ivy and other climbing plants up the walls of my house but been warned by my sister in law to choose carefully as some ivy can harm the walls. So is Hedera Hibernica ( Irish ivy) a safe one?

I should think that any climbing plant growing up a wall (presumably unsupported), will have an effect on it. Also you might want to consider things like earwigs & other insects that would be attracted to the plants, particularly near windows which may be open in warm weather.

If your masonry is sound then no ivy will harm it. The problem lies with damaged/crumbling masonry, because when the ivy is removed from the wall, it pulls the masonry away with it.

If your house is a traditionally built stone French farmhouse with lime plaster exposed between stones - don't plant any sort of ivy, as it will destroy the plaster and move in! Most of the older farmhouses have no cement in the mix, and an inner cavity of rubble between the stones, and the ivy will just invade and blow the walls apart in the end.

If your house is rendered - you may also have the same problem if there are any crack in the render, the ivy will just take hold.


If you want climbing plants, try honeysuckle, country rambling roses and rose hips that don't root into the masonry at all, or try hops - which just need a strong wire or rope to climb up but will give you a lovely crop in October, and you just then cut them back for the winter - which stops anything hibernating in it, and they will grow back each year.


Monika

Plus, if you do grow the ivy and you want to remove some, it will be very hard to get off and will leave ugly traces of its thousands of tiny suckers/roots/feet (what are they called?!) which are impossible to remove. Horrible stuff! I say that because I used to like it in the wilds of my garden but it's now growing up loads of my trees and I can't remove the darn stuff!

Thanks everyone for your replies and suggestions, very helpful.