Getting rid of Ivy

beertons

I had a load of ivy growing up along 2 walls. I pulled the crap out of it the past 2 days, and have it kind of cut away at the top of the soil. What's my option now to get rid of it? There's a few shrubs growing that I want to keep, are they doomed now too? Will I have to dig up all the soil, and fertilize it, or is my best bet to spray some kind of killer all over it? Here's 2 pics of the damage/work ahead of me.

greasepalm

cover plants you want and spray ivy with a systemic weedkiller on a non breezy day as you need to get it into the roots to kill it

a guide.

http://www.rhs.org.uk/media/pdfs/advice/WeedkillersForGardeners

Sonnenblumen

Ivy has an extensive root system and once well established will recover quickly from any major cut back.

You will have to physically remove all roots and/or spray with weedkiller such as Roundup Probiactive. In order to do so safely, it would be better to remove any plants temporarily from the area.

This can be a tough job and anything less than a comprehensive removal will fail to eradicate the ivy.

beertons

Going to start digging it up on Friday. Hopefully spraying then on Sunday. Do I leave it a month then till I go planting in the beds again?

Sonnenblumen

beertons wrote: »

Going to start digging it up on Friday. Hopefully spraying then on Sunday. Do I leave it a month then till I go planting in the beds again?

During this warm and dry spell of weather would be an excellent time to spray. It is usually safe to replant area after 7 days but I would re-spray ivy again after 7 days and wait a further 7 days before new planting. The spray biodegrades on contact with soil. But stubborn weed etc often requires more than 1 spray.

Tip: check the dilution instructions on packaging and reduce the water by 25% to make a stronger more potent solution. In parts I would apply neat with an artist brush.

Citizenpain

Do the leaves of the Ivy have to be sprayed or can you spray the roots?

secman

spray the leaves, it will be drawn down to the roots by the plant, takes a few weeks though, only spray on a calm day !

secman

Citizenpain

But is there any point in the OP spraying if he/she has cut and dug a lot of it away?

greasepalm

yes by spraying the leaves it gets taken down underground to kill what you dont see,thats why a quick acting one is best.

redser7

You could also consider 'managing' it. I had a similar situation but I don't like using those sprays/poisons. So I spend 1-2 hours a year digging out new shoots. It's no great hardship to do this.

looksee

And after nearly a week of this thread I still keep open 'gardening' and wondering who the unfortunate Ivy is. (Sorry, off-topic, I'll go away now :-) )