English Ivy, For privacy?

I'm wondering if English Ivy will be a good choice for privacy planting a long a chain link fence? I need suggestions for some thing hardy, dense growing for privacy, and inexpensive. Thanks!

Hi Whataday, can you give some more info re the hight of the privacy fence you want to grow, maintenance of such (like pruning etc) how long is the fence (how many plants you need) is there light or shade, after that info, I am sure several folks will be able to join in and give you ideas but, for now, my opinion of the ivy would be, it will cause you more trouble than help you out as it is very invasive and wont stay in place where you want it to grow due to the nature of the underground rooting system and it can travel for miles given the right conditions.
Send in more info and I'm sure there will be better ideas for your area /privacy. WeeNel.

Sorry, i didn't give enough info. The Chain link fence is 5ft tall. It goes around a one acre lot.There is going to be some shade and some areas of sun. Over time i want to plant enough to make all the fence private except for the front. I will have to do a little at a time as i can afford it. I want something that will grow thick for privacy. I don't want to do a massive amount of pruning either. I hope this will give you a better idea of what i will need. Thanks.

If you don't want to do a massive amount of pruning then ivy isn't the best choice. You don't mention where you're located, but in most areas I know of that are in zone 8 ivy will spread pretty quickly and grow out of control if you don't manage it (and sometimes even if you do!)

I'm a big fan of Passiflora 'White Wedding'--I've got it along my back fence and it's covered it pretty nice and dense, but doesn't go much of anywhere besides the fence. I'll have to trim it a little eventually, but it's definitely not high maintenance (note--don't assume that other Passifloras will behave the same; I also grow 'Incense' and it hasn't done much of a job covering the fence, but it does pop up runners everywhere in the garden where I don't want it). I also use Solanum laxum for fence-covering purposes. It doesn't grow quite as dense as the Passiflora and needs to be trimmed more often, but it's also quite nice (I have it growing on a lattice outside my master bedroom door to provide privacy from the hiking trail behind the house).

Here's 'White Wedding'...this pic was from the first year after I planted it, since then it's filled in more so you can't see through the fence in that area anymore. And it's covered with gorgeous flowers in the summer. http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/showimage/255442/

Solanum laxum: http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/2078/

I used confederate Jasmine to cover my chain link fence. It is in full sun and partial sun. Green year around with pretty little white flowers all summer and smells great. I do have to tie up loose ends now and then but it is basicly maintenance free.

Red honeysuckle is a good choice. It's semi-evergreen and much more polite than Japanese honeysuckle. I have some growing on a trellis on the east side of my house and it is covered in blooms early in the summer and then blooms sporadically all the way through first good frost. And an extra bonus is that the hummers love it.

Thanks for all the great suggestions. Confederate Jasmine seems like it might be what im looking for. Thanks again to all!

As long as you take the right precautions, ivy is a good choice. My aunt has a wall of bricks, with ivy covering the fence to the pool pump. The bricks kept the ivy from spreading around.

I Love Ivy, but it really all depends on what type you plant, I remember many years ago I grew in a tub or bedding plants a lovely little trailing Ivy and when I emptied the tub I thought I could grow the Ivy in the border as a (Bit) of ground cover, what harm could be done for goodness sake!!!!, well to this day I am still battling this BEAUTIFUL looking Ivy as it has climbed, spread, covered half a border and looks lovely IF it would just behave it's self.
Not all Ivies are good plants and some are great, the amount of old ruined buildings you drive past here in UK and a few years later you cant see the wall or the front garden through the ivy so, be very careful what you want.
I would also consider annuals like sweet peas, or more robust perennials like pelagonums,
Roses, Clematis, Abutilon, and many more, you don't have to rush out and buy these right away, just gather them as you see them on sale or take cuttings from friends or grow from seeds, you will be surprized at how fast these plants will grow once they take off.
Good luck. WeeNel.

WeeNel,
Thanks for the advice. I'm not considering annuals, because I need year round privacy. I looked up pictures of the Clematis, and it does have some beautiful flowers. I haven't decided what I will end up using yet, but since i already have a large tub full of the English ivy, I will probably end up using it. I'm writing down the plants that have been recommended and looking up the info on them.... When I get moved, to the house that i'm needing the privacy planting for. I will head out to the garden shop and see what i can find.

Clematis is a fine choice. It is robust, flowers a whole lot, and climbs for a long distance. I don't know if they are evergreen, or deciduous.

Bloomfly22,
I did some research and found that Clematis Armandii
is evergreen. And suppose to be hardy in zone 8-10 so it would be a good choice for me. I didn't research the cost for it yet though... I copied a picture for you to see.

If you like it, then choose it! It looks very beautiful.

Here are some other wonderful varieties. Here is 'Beauty of Worcester'.

Here is 'Allanah'.

'AliceFisk'

'Belle of Woking ' Also, here is the link to a page on clematis varieties. http://www.homeofclematis.net/working.html

.

This message was edited Jan 17, 2012 9:24 PM

Bloomfly22,
There are a lot of beautiful varieties of Clematis! Thanks for the pictures! I'm going to search and see if any of those varieties are evergreen.

No problem! My favorites are the Beauty of Worcester, and Belle of Woking.