PlantFiles: Irish Ivy
Hedera hibernica

This is just about my all time favorite species of ivy. I make dozens of cuttings a month, and bring them into the woods with me when I walk my dog. If I see a dead tree, I place a cutting at the base of it, and continue on my way, happy with the knowledge that very soon, the the dead will once again resemble the living.

Hibernica turns a wonderful red in the winter...it's reminiscent of a dinosaur egg...

This species is actually good down to -20...it never dies...it keeps growing 24/7and looks great when everything else is barren. Once mature (it has climbed for "x" amount of years), it will offer its fruit to the local bird population, at a time when no other food is available, thus ensuring the consumption of its seeds. The berries offer the birds a nutritious meal...however once the fruit coating of the berry is digested, a powerful laxative within the seed coat begins its magic, and in no time at all, Hedera hibernica has replicated itself like the highly advanced life form that it is.

If you like ivy, and you want it to grow fast (for the species), stay away from the many ridicules cultivars of Hedera helix; pick a winner instead.

If there was one plant in the plant kingdom that I would exterminate, this would be it. It is a pernicious parasitic pest that is killing untold thousands of trees in Ireland, and throughout much of Europe, and probably beyond.
Common Ivy, Hedera helix, is bad enough, but it takes quite some time to kill its victim, and is not too difficult to remove, if caught early enough. This one seems to grow at a rate of knots and once it has hold of a tree, it is nearly impossible to remove.
Forget plants that are unpleasant to humans (stinging nettles etc.), this is the absolute pits!
If you find it, kill it!!!