IVY

4th December 2023

Ivy at Hampton Court, Inset (Ivy flowers & fruit)

IVY (Hedera helix)

Ivy makes several appearances in Shakespeare in both negative and positive senses. In the Tempest and Comedy of Errors Ivy is a useless parasite sucking out life. In Midsummer Night’s Dream Ivy is a symbol of encircling love and in Two Noble Kinsmen, a description for curling locks. In a Winter’s Tale the sheep of Bohemia are grazing Ivy on the seashore…, interesting and confusing on all levels.

Ivy is connected with the rites of Bacchus and wine drinking. Pliny tells us that Ivy is remarkably efficacious for testing wine and that “a vessel made of this wood will let the wine pass through it, while the water will remain behind, if there has been any mixed with it.”

There are two species of Ivy in Britain, Common Ivy (Hedera helix) and Hibernian Ivy (Hedera hibernica), as well as numerous cultivated varieties. All the experts agree on the difficulties of identifying Ivy species. Common Ivy has 3 to 5 lobes on the young leaves but leaves on older plants are often oval. Ivy produces flowers in autumn and early winter which provides a welcome food supply for many insects. Ivy has black berries held in a round cluster. Ivy can thrive in a wide variety of habitats and a range of challenging conditions. It provides shelter and food for many species.

Ivy has been blamed for killing trees and for destroying masonry walls. Ivy does not strangle trees and has its own root system for water and it able to make its own food. The question of damage to walls is more nuanced. Historic England commissioned research and found both positive and negative aspects of Ivy on historic buildings.

More Information

BSBI Plant Atlas 2020: Ivy

Historic England: Ivy on Walls Report

Oxford Plants 400: Ivy

Pliny the Elder, The Natural History, Book 16, Chapter 63 (Accessed via Perseus Tufts Digital Collection)

Woodland Trust: Ivy