A Cautionary Tale About Ivy

 Ivy brings a combination of pleasure and pain to the garden, and the potential to surprise gardeners who do not pay attention

Forty years ago, when I moved to my current residence, the property had a generous crop of English Ivy (Hedera helix). This most common species of the genus Hedera has some appeal in the garden. The Royal Horticultural Society has honored fourteen cultivars of H. helix with its Award of Garden Merit, reflecting the plant’s apparent good behavior in England’s climate.

Despite its British credentials, H. helix grows rampantly on the west coast of the United States. Washington and Oregon have listed it as a noxious weed. California’s Department of Food and Agriculture has not yet listed this plant as a noxious weed, but hopefully is considering that action. 

This plant had covered much of my new garden, grown into some shrubs, and overwhelmed a large evergreen tree. We removed the tree, with great regret. After several months of hacking at this invasive plant and uncounted ivy hauls to the local landfill, we had it under control. During the following years, we pulled many sprouts and still do today. The more recent sprouts probably began with bird visits, but it is not impossible that dormant ivy seeds have been lurking in my garden for decades, awaiting a taste of moisture and sunlight.

More recently, perhaps five years ago, a variegated cultivar of Algerian Ivy (H. algeriensis) caught my eye, and I planted a small amount near the base of a chimney as a groundcover. All ivies grow horizontally, and are often selected for groundcover duty. My willingness to give this plant another chance in my garden reflects both short memory and persistent optimism.

In the same area, and with similar optimism, I installed a Big Mexican Scarlet Sage (Salvia gesneriiflora). This plant quickly grew well above ten feet in height (it can reach twenty feet high in the mountains of northeastern Mexico) and spread to four separate shrubs.

These beautiful but huge plants concealed the ivy’s relentless spread. The Algerian Ivy/Big Mexican Scarlet Sage collusion continued for weeks, until the enormous salvia finished blooming, and became ready for renewal pruning (i.e., cutting it to the ground).

That drastic action revealed that the ivy had discovered the chimney that rises about thirty feet beside the house, and used it aerial roots to grow to the top of the chimney and spread in both directions across the side of the house. This growth had not been impossible to observe, but the tall shrubs close to the pathway effectively screened the situation from view.

There’s a certain charm to ivy-covered walls, but the plant eventually can cause damage and rot, and harbor unwelcome wildlife. My best choice was to have the ivy pulled down, expecting that it would take down some of the thin-brick veneer, which it did.

There is no simple solution to ivy on the house and chimney.

The next steps of this project include reattaching the missing pieces of the veneer, removing the ivy and all but one specimen of the Big Mexican Scarlet Sage, and keeping it pruned to appropriate size.

Then, the project includes shopping for plants to re-landscape the area. The UCSC Arboretum’s Fall Plant Sale will be a fine opportunity to acquire California native plants for this project. The sale begins at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow (Saturday, October 13th).

Lesson learned: if you plant any variety of ivy in your garden, check occasionally to make sure that it is growing only where you want it to grow.

Glorious Geophytes for the Garden

Right now is a good time of the year to plant spring-flowering bulbs. There are many available varieties for venturesome gardeners to consider, and we regularly recommend trying unfamiliar botanical treasures. Today’s column features daffodils, which could well be the most popular and most frequently hybridized of the geophytes.

‘King Alfred’ Daffodils

Here are reasons for including daffodils in your garden.

Really Beautiful

Many flowers are delightful in the garden, and many gardeners have their favorites, but just about everyone enjoys daffodils, especially when they declare the arrival of the spring season. Daffodils have graceful stems, attractive foliage, and unique blossoms. Trumpet daffodils, the most familiar division within the genus Narcissus, have blossoms that feature the trumpet-shaped corona surrounded by six petal-like tepals, which form the perianth. The corona and perianth might have the same color, or different colors.

Numerous Hybrids

A very large and growing number of hybrid daffodils are available through garden centers and mail order nurseries. Many plants are yellow or white, or combinations of those colors; hybridizers have introduced cultivars with green, pink, orange and red elements. There are interesting and pleasing color combinations for various tastes.

The growing number of hybrids includes variations of shapes, particularly in the coronas that might be single or double in form, or might have ruffled or frilly edges.

There are also varieties that bloom in at various rtimes, as early a late December and as late as early, mid- or late spring, so with a little planning you can create an extended display.

Perennialize Themselves

During their growing season, many hybrid daffodil bulbs form side bulbils that develop new bulbs and provide more flowers in the following season. A clump of daffodils will increase in sixe from one season to the next. In time, the clump can be come crowded, and the gardener can dig up the bulbs for replanting over a larger area, or gift them to friends.

Naturalize Themselves

Some varieties will develop seeds and sow them naturally to form additional populations of plants Over a few seasons, they can spread throughout a meadow area, providing a stunning display.

Free of Pests and Diseases

The bulbs and foliage of daffodils are poisonous to most pests, because all parts of the plant includes the toxic chemical, lycorine. Consequently, the plants have minimal problem with deer, gophers or other rodents. If such pests tend to favor your garden, daffodils will provide a fine display without the expectation that plants will disappear when you’re not looking.

Daffodils are not immune to diseases, and basal rot and fungi could attack the plants, as will as nematodes, bulb flies, or viruses. However, plants grown in good soil with good drainage, and regular care generally will resist such difficulties. The references listed below include helpful information about managing such problems.

Easy to Plant

Daffodil bulbs are planted three times the width of the bulb apart, three times the width of the bulb deep. They can be planted singly, with a trowel or other tool, or in groups by removing the desired amount of soil from the planting area, positioning the bulbs, then replacing the soil. Each gardener has a favorite planting method. In any case, planting a large number of daffodil bulbs can be accomplished quickly.

For more information, here are recommendations of Becky Fox Matthews a past president of the American Daffodil Society:

The American Daffodil Society – The ADS is :The AmericanCenter for Daffodil Information” providing rich resources on its website.

Daffseek – A online photo database with an incredible amount of features (different languages, photos from all over the world, daffodil genealogy and more), made free to the public by the American Daffodil Society;

Daffnet – A discussion forum for For people interested in growing, showing, or hybridizing daffodils

Dafflibrary – Books, articles and journal about daffodils

Dafftube – Slide presentations and video recordings, many of which were presented originally during national or regional meetings of the American Daffodil Society.

Many thanks to Becky Fox Matthews for sharing these links.

Another useful source of information is the website of England’s The Daffodil Society. The Society was established in 1898 as the specialist society of Great Britain for all who are interested in the Genus Narcissus

 Daffodil bulbs will be available now, and through most of the fall months from local garden centers and several mail order nurseries. Several mail order nurseries throughout the United States will offer daffodil bulbs. An Internet search for “daffodil bulbs” will list several sources.

Many gardeners will favor west coast suppliers on the premise that they grow their bulbs under conditions like those of the local area.

In addition, I will list Brent and Becky’s Bulbs, located in Gloucester, VA, not the west coast. This family business began in the early 1900s as a daffodil specialist and has since grown to offer over 1,000 varieties of bulbs. Daffodils continue to be their favorite product, and they offer many beautiful cultivars. Their website also offers solid advice on cultivation. Click on the menu for “Media.”

If you don’t already have daffodils in your garden, this is the time to select and order cultivars that speak to you, and plant the bulbs in preparation for a delightful display in the spring.