Ahh, English ivy. Classic. Evergreen.
Invasive. Destructive. Toxic.
Welcome to our first post highlighting invasive plants that should never be planted in your landscape. English ivy is a classic vine commonly used as a ground cover or grown up walls and structures. Most people are aware that it's "handfasts" which it uses to connect to flat surfaces, are very destructive to brick and mortar. We've all seen trees completely overwhelmed by ivy, blocking light for photosynthesis and weighing down branches. English ivy is also invasive, it's seeds spread by birds across the countryside. It chokes out nearly every plant it can reach.
So what can you do if you have English Ivy at your home? Seriously consider removing it. Be careful to dig out the roots very well, and immediately pull or spray any new sprouts that come up.
You can get the same kind of look by planting Virginia creeper. This is a native plant with large green leaves that turn a brilliant red in the fall. It can also choke out plants, so be careful to not let it run up your trees, but it's attachment to walls is non-destructive.