Plantlife in the Park: Ivy
December 4, 2020
The humble and often much maligned ivy is one of the most important plants for biodiversity, helping to maintain 50 or more other species of wildlife, particularly invertebrates.
Only the juvenile growth of ivy has the familiar adhesive roots which allow it to grow up trees and walls.
The mature or ‘tree’ ivy loses its clinging habit and develops simple elliptic leaves rather than the triangular lobed leaves its starts life with.
It develops dense, bushy growth and, in late summer, produces wonderful umbels of scented green and gold flowers which are followed by globular matt-black berries.
The dense foliage provides hiding places for small insects and spiders which are sought after by small birds such as tits, goldcrests and chiffchaffs.
The dense cover also provides safe nesting sites for birds.
The flowers are a rich source of nectar for a huge range of bees, hoverflies, wasps, moths, flies and other invertebrates, and you cannot fail to notice how attractive they are to red Admiral butterflies.
Come the autumn, the fat-rich black berries are a welcome feast for blackcaps, blackbirds and other thrushes.
The beautiful holly blue butterfly also lays eggs on the developing berries of ivy.
Later on, the dense foliage is a safe winter haven away from predators for those butterflies which hibernate as adults over winter including the small tortoiseshell, peacock, red admiral and brimstone.
The lack of grass in the drought this spring and summer has seen the local sheep on the Seven Sisters stripping all the ivy they can reach as alternative forage, so the old saying is true ‘little lambs eat ivy’.
It’s hard to think of a common plant that has more uses in the world.
Kate Frankland, Volunteer for the Eastern Downs
Pic by Marco Antonio Victorino