GOOD BEAR BAD IVY
I am not happy to rain on the Ivy Bear topiary parade — but I must. I believe the article published in our Mt Times about the Bear was interesting but should have included an advisory about Evil Ivy. English Ivy has been illegal to propagate, transport, or sell in Oregon since 2010, is banned for LIFE in Lincoln County, and should be banned in Clackamas County as well. English Ivy shouldn’t be planted or glorified in any way. Why? English Ivy ( Hedera helix) is classified as a very invasive, noxious weed. It is monstrous. It smothers, chokes out, hogs water and nutrients, it kills. Just look at the wasteland ivy creates along Hwy 26, and worse, along the banks of the Sandy River.
The stuff is like something from a bad horror movie. It kills trees, denudes stream banks ( ie, is bad for fish), chokes out delicate, native wildflowers, causes trees to fall: ivy has been described as “cunning and ruthless.” And while it is not a “crime” to plant it, it is irresponsible to do so. Most homeowners and businesses no longer plant It, because it is a community nuisance and costly to eradicate. Birds ingest the seeds greedily and then spread the plant everywhere. There are better alternatives to English Ivy for topiaries, and especially one as large as the “Ivy Bear.” The noninvasive sterile variety Woemeri Ivy would be a great choice. (your local nursery will have more suggestions).
Don’t plant English Ivy. Period. Yesterday I was hiking a little tributary to the Sandy River and saw one little sprig of the creepy stuff starting to grow, I ripped it out by its scrawny neck! Seriously, though, English Ivy is no joking matter. $125 MILLION dollars PER YEAR in Oregon alone is spent to control noxious weeds. The Sandy River Council and other groups worked hard to get rid of the stuff. I don’t need to document all the eradication efforts and money spent in this short letter: just look it up.
Kate O’Halloran, Brightwood