Mid-Atlantic Gardening: spring time plant shopping, 1 by coleup

coleup wrote:
Oh those hallowed halls of ivy!!!

Happy, some of my wish list for plants is just that, a wish because I also know the reality! To illustrate, of my 5 tall oaks (no brick walls, just cedar siding) one has Winter Creeper up about 30 feet. Another has Virginia Creeper up 40 feet. My other trees I keep free of English Ivy, honeysuckle, wild grape. cat briar vines?, and poisen ivy. Neighbors trees are not maintained free of vines and sport all of the above. Every Spring one of my yardening chores is to cut back or pull out the encroaching vines attempting to go vertical, Skip a year at one's own peril. Vines like English Ivy/euonomus and probably climbing hydarnges when removed from a 'wall' pull away parts of the wall and leave bits of their holdfasts behind leaving a vinefree surface that takes many hours of labor to restore to pre-vine condition. Pulls bark off of trees and is strong enough to pop off shingles or gutters it gets behind.

An "ivy covered" cottage may be picturesque and romantic, but will sell less quickly me thinks! Just like puppies grow up to be dogs any plant that matures at 30 to 60 feet takes some 'knowing the end before the beginning' and if you only have a 20 foot ladder, the commitment to cut it back as opposed to letting it go!

lol, I like climbing hydrangea because it gives us a number of years to reconsider our decision before it is neigh impossible to reverse. When I trim back my viney yard I think how glad I am not to be dealing with Kudzu! 7 inches per day!!!!
http://www.mdinvasivesp.org/archived_invaders/archived_invad...

I told you not to park there! Honey, have you seen my pruners?