English ivy or Hedera helix has become a common sight throughout the UK and is being used more and more in urban design. Why you might ask? There have been many debates about the pros and cons of ivy, but here are six key reasons why ivy is beneficial…

Health benefits

Ivy is known for its many health benefits, as it reduces mold and improves air quality. This is a well recognised topic at the moment due to a rise in people having respiratory problems. According to NASA, ivy is one of the top air purifying plants, removing toxins like

Benzene
Formaldehyde
Xylene
Toulene

These toxins are commonly known for causing sick building syndrome, which is when people feel ill when spending time in a particular building. English ivy can also reduce particles of mold, with NASA’s study finding that about 78.5 percent of mold particles reduced in just 12 hours (although this testing was done in a small enclosed space or container, so it is not as effective in a home).

From removing all these toxins in the air and reducing the amount of mould particles, ivy can have beneficial effects on those with asthma, bronchitis and COPD symptoms. How you might ask? Ivy relaxes the airways and purifies the air helping ensure ‘clean air’ is transporting into the lungs.

Ivy can protect buildings:

Ivy grows extremely rapidly, climbing up buildings, walls and tree canopies. The English Heritage carried out a three year project with Oxford University to determine the true effects of ivy on our buildings and walls. The findings were positive showing that in winter ivy covered walls kept the inside of the building 15% warmer than other parts of the building. For summer, the reserve effect, the walls were recorded to be 36% cooler!

Ivy also help protect and preserve walls from frost, salt and pollution. The only time ivy is not beneficial and should be removed is on buildings that have existing structural damage because the ivy will grow its roots into cracks and crevices.

It’s an invaluable late season nectar source

In Autumn, ivy produces small yellow flowers, these flowers produce nectar; this is a food source for many insects during a time of food scarcity.

Many insects including, but not limited to wasps, hornets, hoverflies, bumblebees, small tortoiseshells, peacock butterflies and red admirals rely on ivy’s nectar source to survive the late Autumn season. The nectar is an essential part of the ecosystem, providing the reserves needed by the adult admiral butterfly to hibernate over winter.

Year round shelter

Ivy stays green and flourishes all year round, making it a vital source of shelter for many animals. A dense evergreen ivy such as Hedera helix provides a continuous refuge for many UK birds and other small animals. These creatures hide, roost, nest and hibernate among the ivy. If you ever consider getting rid of some ivy, just remember that it could be a small animal or birds bed.

A winter life line for wildlife

Because of its ability to thrive in cold and low light situations ivy is a winter lifeline to the UK’s wildlife. Ivy is the plant equivalent of a 24/7, 364 day grocery store for animals throughout the year. Not only do the flowers provide nectar for the insects in Autumn, but the dark berries produced in the harsh winter months provide an essential food source for many birds including blackbirds, thrushes and wood pigeons.

Ivy also acts as a ground cover all year round. This reduces the effects of frost hardening the ground in the winter months. How is this beneficial? This means that animals can continue to forage in the leaf litter during the harsh winter months.

Ivy doesn’t harm trees

One of the biggest myths about ivy is that it harms trees. This is not completely true, ivy is not a parasite, meaning it doesn’t take substance from a tree, it lays down its own roots. Like other harmful plants, ivy does not suffocate or strangle trees, it merely travels up the tree to try reach light.

However, one negative effect ivy does have on a tree is that it reduces the trees capacity to produce energy. It does this by covering the trees canopy. It covers its leafing branches which can limit the trees ability to photosynthesise. However if this does occur, it will not kill the tree, unless the tree has another concerning factor such as a disease.

Are you wanting some ivy green screens? Contact us today!

Photos by Flickr, BBC, and Woodland Trust.