To the editor:
To my regret, 30 years ago I planted English ivy on a slope to keep blackberries under control and because I thought it required low maintenance and the dark green leaves looked good. Today, I'm slowly pulling it out and wishing I had known 30 years ago what I know today about English ivy.
As I move around Kirkland I seem to spot ivy everywhere - especially climbing high into trees. The big green masses are easily seen at this time of the year in deciduous trees. I'm so concerned about the spreading of this invasive plant, I thought I'd share what I have learned about ivy and hope that you, too, will be concerned.
English ivy was recently listed as a noxious weed by the Washington State Noxious Weed Board. It is not native to the United States and has no natural predators or pests to keep it in check. It easily escapes from planting areas and invades natural areas, parks and urban forests. It creates "ivy deserts" - areas so dominated by ivy that no other vegetation survives.
Ivy disrupts the normal plant succession process because indigenous species, including conifers, cannot successfully establish themselves even if they do germinate. It crowds out and smothers native plant seedlings.
Ivy affects trees negatively, especially when it climbs into the canopy. By adding weight to limbs and reducing air flow around the tree's trunk, ivy makes a tree more susceptible to canopy failure, wind stress and disease. It can also strangle a tree around its base by reducing the flow of nutrients up and down the tree. Ivy blossoms and seeds form on vertical surfaces as it climbs up trees and fences where it is then further spread by birds. Two alien bird species, the European starlings and English house sparrows, eat the berries and spread the seeds, but native birds and wildlife do not benefit from ivy.
It does, however, provide good habitat for rats and mosquitoes.
What can you do? Do not plant ivy. Luckily, some nurseries will not sell English ivy anymore. Some communities prohibit the planting of it! Remove ivy from your yard - especially from vertical surfaces where it develops seeds.
If you would like further information about this invasive plant or how to remove it, please go to the www.ivyout.org Web site. There you will find everything you will ever want to know about ivy! Let's try to control it in Kirkland!
Nona Ganz
Kirkland[[In-content Ad]]
