Remove ivy & fight effectively

As beautiful as it is, ivy can also quickly overgrow the garden. We show how to successfully control and remove unwanted ivy.

Once ivy, always ivy? ivy (Hedera helix) to remove is not that easy. The vigorous plant has overgrown everything that stands in its way in no time at all. In many places that may be all well and good, for example in overgrown garden corners, along walls or even on the facade of a house. Sometimes, however, the ivy overdoes it and literally grows over your head. Then it only helps to put it in its place and at least partially remove it.

Remove ivy

Removing ivy without leaving any residue is a bit of a challenge. The planting as facade greening or ground cover should therefore be carefully considered. On the other hand, ivy is far better than its reputation. It not only beautifies otherwise bare areas with its lobed, evergreen leaves, but is also a valuable habitat and source of food. Contrary to the popular claim that he would strangle trees and rob them of their light, he only uses them as a support. At most, it does damage to smaller trees such as fruit trees. Ivy actually remains innocent on the facade of a house, too. The roots that it uses to cling to the wall are just sticky roots. These do not destroy the facade. It only becomes critical when the facade is not completely undamaged from the outset and the ivy roots find cracks and damage, which they can then burst open further.

So maybe you don't have to banish ivy from your surroundings right away, it is enough if you push it back a good bit.

Reduce ivy

Parts of the plant should be removed, especially when ivy overshoots the mark. Ivy, which grows up the facade to over the roof, can easily become a danger if the exploratory plant spreads under roof tiles and these are lifted in the process. Then nothing helps and the ivy must once again be carefully put back in its place. The nice thing about ivy is that it cuts down quite well. Since it is very insensitive to back cuts, you can confidently cut into old wood to reduce it. Be radical, because the plant will recover quickly enough. Tips on how to make your Prune ivy properly can be found here.

Fighting ivy: how to get rid of it

If pushing back the ivy alone is not enough, then you will probably have to lend a hand on a larger scale. When removing ivy, you should pay particular attention to the roots, because ivy is a very resilient plant. Even small remnants of roots can quickly develop back into a whole plant. Even if the root is deep, it must be dug out as completely as possible. Herbicides are of little help here, as they cannot completely kill ivy. Dig deeper and deeper bit by bit, gradually removing the root. With smaller ivy plants, it also helps to loosen up the soil with the help of a garden fork.

Remove ivy from trees

Even if ivy does not cause any significant damage to trees, it is still far from desirable there. The good news is, removing ivy from a tree is not a big hassle. The bad news: It takes a long time for the remains of the plant to disappear entirely. The principle is simple. Since ivy is not a parasite, but only gets its water and nutrients from the roots in the ground, you only need to cut the connection. So cut off the ivy trunks around the tree trunk at one height. The shoots in the tree will gradually die off as they starve and die of thirst. However, leave these shoots in the tree for the time being, as the adhesive roots adhere firmly to the bark of the tree. Tearing down the shoots could seriously damage the tree. So let the shoots die off in peace. After a few months to two years they will first wither and then begin to rot. The roots also slowly give in and you can carefully pull the dead shoots down from the tree. Until then, unfortunately, they hang a little undecoratively in the tree crown and distribute their withered leaves all over the place below the tree. But none of it helps.

If you want to remove not just the ivy tendrils, but the entire plant, then of course you have to tamper with the roots.

Remove ivy as ground cover

Even as a ground cover, ivy can sometimes get out of hand, especially if it is not pruned regularly. Then it's time to remove a fair amount of the ivy. Approach it slowly and carefully. The best thing to do is to take one vine at a time and pull the roots out of the ground with you when you remove them. Because wherever root remains remain, an ivy could sprout again. So work now rather than worry later. With larger roots, it helps to lift the ground beforehand with the garden fork.

Remove ivy from the house facade

Ivy on the house facade has many wonderful advantages: birds find a rich nesting place, native butterflies and Bees enjoy the late bloom and, last but not least, your house will be better insulated against heat. However, if you have let the pruning drag a little, the ivy will quickly grow over your head. And sometimes you just want to change something and therefore remove the ivy. Unfortunately, nothing helps with this work: it is and remains work.

First remove the coarsest. It helps to wait for a longer period of rain or to soak the facade a little. This makes it easier to remove the ivy from the wall of the house. Now start from the top and carefully pull the shoots off the facade. Do this slowly and carefully to protect the plaster and paint. Once the ivy has been removed, you can tackle the roots. Depending on the type of facade, you have various options for removing the adhesive roots from the house wall.

Instructions for removing ivy from the house facade:

• Smooth surfaces such as concrete or slate: you will get a long way here with a spatula. Scrape off the adherent roots cleanly. You can then brush again with a stiff brush.
• Rough clinker: The best thing to do is to use a wire brush and take the facade brick by brick.
• Wood: The simplest variant is probably to sand off the remains of the ivy and then treat the wood fresh.
• Plastered facade: Use a stiff brush and gradually remove the stubborn adhesive roots from the facade.

You can achieve the final touch by brushing the house wall with washing-up liquid mixed with clean water. How to remove accumulated dirt from the facade.

If you don't want to re-plaster or repaint anyway, it is not advisable to use means such as sandblasting or high-pressure cleaners. This easily damages the facade and roughened the color. Burning down is not entirely without it. Apart from the fact that the facade is then sooty and therefore needs a new coat of paint, this technology is not entirely harmless, depending on the facade and insulation material.

If you have decided not to remove the ivy entirely, but only to contain it a little, you can find out everything about how to do this here Cutting the ivy.