The flowers of Common Ivy, which look like alien spaceships to me are alive with insects at this time of year. The Red Admiral butterflies and Ivy Bees nectaring on Ivy alongside the Lane to the Rec were too quick for my camera skills - I wish I could record the buzz! Most of the Ivy “buzz” at this time of year comes from Ivy bees, a new arrival in the uk in 2001. They are harmless so enjoy them if you find them nesting in your lawn. Red Admirals relish the banquet of late flowering Ivy nectar as they prepare to migrate south or hibernate in the uk using winter protection from plants like Ivy. Holly blue butterflies also need Ivy. Indeed Ivy Blue would be an equally appropriate name for the lovely Holly Blue butterfly. Spring emerging butterflies lay their eggs on Holly, but Ivy is the foodplant for the second summer brood. Our butterflies have had such a hard time this year so we have fingers crossed some Holly Blue larvae are safely tucked up for the Winter in our garden Ivy. Ivy is a mega plant when it comes to helping our wildlife with 105 invertebrates known to use it. Ivy foliage protects small mammals in Winter, provides nesting for birds and the berries are a crucial early Spring food. Blackbirds, blackcaps and thrushes love them. It goes without saying that any pruning should be partial, rotating pruned areas to always leave some berries, and left until late Autumn after flowering. Some myth busting! Ivy doesn’t pull down walls or kill trees! To quote Monty Don “Ivy is not a parasite and does not draw any energy or nutrients from the plant that it climbs up. Rootlets – which only grow on the side away from the light and in response to a young shoot touching a firm surface – grow to support the ivy rather than feed it”. The advice is to leave or only prune to reduce extensive tree crown growth interfering with photosynthesis or increasing wind damage risk,by acting as a sail. English Heritage and RHS research found beneficial insulation effects from Ivy on walls which is more likely to protect than causes damp. English Heritage -Ivy. Ivy clad walls keep homes cool in summer. RHS research
And I haven’t even started on Ivy’s extensive cultural history!
