Killing Ivy

[lovetoscrap]

My entire house is surrounded by ivy. I hate the stuff. It climbs and ruins the paint and siding and our screened in porch. It is getting into the grass. It is just a pain in the rear.

I sprayed Round up on it a few weeks ago but that only wounded it. DH mowed over it so I can get to the vines to pull them but after 2 hours of pulling I only had about a 6 ft. area done and there is a ton more to do. And I know I missed stuff that I will have to go back to do.

Is there anything I can put on it to just KILL it? I want something deadly!

 

[mjkacmom]

Our house is on a little hill, and we have ivy out front. However, we have/had giant oak trees on our property, and in the neighborhood, which have come down in recent years during storms, and our once shady property now gets sun, and the ivy looks horrible. Unfortunately, I think the only way to remove ivy is to rent a machine to dig up the roots (our neighbor just did this). I don't think you can kill it, unless you remove it.

 

[Boo'sMom]

Round up should work, but be sure the leaves are dry when you spray. Also, add a dash of dish detergent to the roundup.

 

[Aisling]

I also tried Roundup and it didn't work well. I don't have a large area of it, but it's enough to be a major nuisance, because it's an ant superhighway from the yard straight to my kitchen window. I just keep pulling them down. It's getting frustrating because I live in an attached house, and the ivy growing on my side goes onto my neighbor's house, and she politely asked me to get rid of it. I don't know what else to do but pull every few days.

 

[coles1mom]

In dating Mr. Yahoo this morning,

vinegar, lots of vinegar, you may need to do it 2 or 3 times, or cover it with wet newspaper and 2" of bark mulch.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Even if you use Round Up you are going to still have to remove the Ivy and if you want to plant the area, you are going to have to wait 6 weeks until you can do so. Also you won't get it all that way.

As a horticulturist I do not recommend damaging your soil with chemicals.

I also do not recommend a tiller either because all you are doing is making the plant more prolific by cutting it up. The pieces you cut up will regrow. So, esp. do not do this.

Hand removal with an assortment of garden tools is the way you do it. I have done it so I know what a pain it is. It will take awhile to fully remove it. Just work it on until it is done.

Here is site to explain...

http://www.ivyout.org/ivyremove.html