This evergreen climber is very common and known to us all with its glossy dark green triangular leaves webbed with paler veins. Ivy can climb up to 30m but can also carpet woodland floors. Despite its appearance the ivy is not a parasite as it gains all its nutrients from the soil through its roots as with other plants. The stems are covered with filaments that act like suckers, anchoring ivy to its support, be that a wall or tree. Ivy will use walls, trees and other standing structures such as gravestones as a scaffold and support, but can equally, in maturity support itself with thick trunk like roots and an upright habit like a tree. Flowers only appear on shoots in good light. They are small and yellow green and easily overlooked. It is the ivy flowers that make this plant so unusual and so important for wildlife. Its flowering period is during September to November, when most other flowers have gone over. This acts as an important nectar source for a range of insects during the autumn, particularly bees, and enables them to gather some final stores of honey for the winter period. The late flowering period means also that the berries form later in the season. These small black berries can be seen throughout the winter and into early spring. They provide an important food source for birds, when other food sources are becoming scarce. The thick dense growth of ivy throughout the rest of the year also provide good nesting habitat for birds.
Attitudes to ivy are varied, particularly in relation to trees. Some see it as a threat to trees whilst others view it as a wildlife habitat and harmless. A healthy tree should be perfectly happy with ivy growing all over it. Sometimes it may be prudent to trim back the growth in the crown of a tree, but there should be no need to remove it completely. The ivy in maturity will bear its own weight on the roots it puts out, the tree acting merely as scaffold. However, the views on ivy will remain complex. It is a beautiful plant to see with many associations with folklore and traditions.
Find out about what's been seen on our sightings page, or take a look at details of some of the projects and sites that we work on.