One gardener recently took to the r/gardening subreddit to boast, with a before-and-after picture, about their successful removal of invasive ivy from their yard.
"Ivy removal — made big progress this weekend! — 'before' and after!" the poster wrote, adding in a comment that "I've still got several couple of feet to go, and thoroughly go through and dig up the roots, but I thought this was great progress for a couple of hours!"
As many home gardeners know, English ivy is one of the most harmful and difficult to eradicate invasive plant species in North America. Many people plant it simply because they like the way it looks, not realizing how quickly it spreads, how deep and strong its roots grow, and how fully it covers and snuffs out other plant life.
This can end up being a huge, costly problem several years down the line, and that problem is frequently left to the next homeowner.
In some cases, English ivy has even grown through a wall and appeared inside a house, threatening the property's structural integrity and causing tens of thousands of dollars worth of damages.
The other members of the subreddit were full of both congratulations and warnings about how the ivy probably wasn't dead yet.
"It looks good! Just be sure to keep an eye on it for a couple years," one commenter advised. "There's absolutely no way in hell you got it all, but if you pull out the sprouts the moment they show their faces, you should be able to properly [kill] them with about 2 years of constant vigilance."
🗣️ What's the hardest thing about taking care of your yard?
🔘 Mowing the lawn 🏡
🔘 Controlling weeds 🌿
🔘 Keeping pests at bay 🐿️
🔘 I don't have a yard 🤷
🗳️ Click your choice to see results and speak your mind
Another wrote: "I had a similar weekend. I absolutely despise ivy with every bone in my body. But my neighbors on either side have it so I'm constantly having to pull it up. I pulled it away from a shrub last year and now for the first time in several years, the plant has new growth. Ivy must have been choking it out, so now I'm pulling it away from all the others. Absolutely giant PITA though. Well done on yours!"
Whenever you're planting something new in your garden, it's always a great idea to do research first to confirm you're going with a native species. Native species are already adapted to live in harmony with one another in your local ecosystem, and, unlike invasive species, will not cause huge, costly headaches at a future date — and will save you money and time on maintenance in the here and now.
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