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Vines - Part 5 - Ivy

© Marge Talt

A lot of plants are called "ivy", but only those belonging to the genus Hedera are really ivy. Most of us know ivy as a rather rampant and somewhat boring evergreen ground or building cover, but once you discover the shapes, forms and colors of ivy, be warned, it can become addictive. As a vine for shade, it is unsurpassed.

The genus Hedera is one of forty-nine genera with some seven hundred species belonging to the Ginseng family, Araliaceae.

Fourteen species of Hedera are listed in the GRIN database,including several subspecies and variations on H. helix. Of these, a handful are commonly available, including:

• Hedera canariensis (Algerian ivy, African ivy, Canary Island ivy or Madeira ivy and even Elephant Leaf Ivy), native to Africa, Portugal and the Azores, Spain, and the Canary Islands, has distinctive red leaf stems and large leaves. Really a tropical or sub-tropical plant, it's damaged if temperatures fall much below 20F (-6.6C). Where hardy (USDA zones 9 - 10), it is adaptable to various soils and pH, while preferring rich, moist soil in part sun to shade. Where not hardy, it makes a good houseplant. Where it can be grown outside, it establishes and grows rapidly.

• Hedera colchica (Persian ivy, colchis ivy), native to temperate Asia, Georgia, the Russian Federation, Caucasia and north Turkey and Iran. It's hardy to 15F (10C). There are some lovely cultivars around:
  • 'My Heart'wants some shade in zones 7-10.

  • 'Dentata Variegata' won three awards from the Royal Horticultural Society (1907, 1979, and 1984). Can be grown outside from USDA Zones 6-9, and used as a houseplant in colder areas.

  • 'Sulfur Heart' while hardy, may need a protected spot in zone 6 and a winter mulch, but the large leaves with yellow centers, known in England as 'Paddy's Pride' make it well worth a bit of effort.

• Hedera rhombea (Japanese or Korean ivy) is native to temperate Asia, mostly Japan, and hardy from USDA zones 6-9. There's also a variegated form with small to medium sized leaves (hard to find, I understand), known as Variegated Korean ivy.

  Not so commonly grown are:

  • Hedera nepalensis (Nepal ivy), found in the Himalayas, Afghanistan and western China.

  • Hedera caucasigena, native to the former Soviet Union (Lazistan, Kachetia and West Transcaucasia).

  • I've run into a reference for Hedera pastuchovii (Russian Ivy), supposedly native to the Caucasus Mountains, near the Black Sea, but have not been able to verify that this is a valid name. I'm mentioning it in case you also run across it