On 07/06/2016 20:59, Ian Jackson wrote:
In message , Chris Hogg
writes
On Mon, 06 Jun 2016 08:23:08 +0100, thescullster
wrote:

Hi all

It must be the time of year - 2 posts on the same day!

We have a pretty mature silver birch in the corner of our garden.
Until yesterday it was covered in ivy to two thirds of its height.

The questions a

Does an ivy cover actually damage the tree? I noticed that some hidden
areas were damp and housing wood lice due to the cover. Maybe the
tendrils of the ivy suck nutrients from the host tree?

Also, I have a bird box on the side of the tree which had become
engulfed in ivy. Would this make the birds more wary, as there would be
perches for predators maybe?

Thanks

Phil

AIUI ivy on trees is not a problem unless it gets so dense and
extensive that there is a danger it will cause the tree to topple, in
a winter gale for example. But that's unusual. The tendrils or 'roots'
that you see along the ivy stems are not roots in the usual sense, in
that the ivy does not use them for drawing nourishment from the tree;
their only purpose is to cling on to whatever the ivy is climbing.

I doubt that the ivy would make the birds more wary of using the box;
On the contrary in fact, it would provide more camouflage and make the
birds feel safer, provided of course they can gain entry and the hole
isn't covered or blocked. The insects that live in the ivy are a
source of food for birds.

If you don't want the ivy there, for cosmetic reasons, just cut
through the ivy stems where they come out of the ground at the base of
the tree. The ivy will die and look unsightly for a while until all
the leaves have browned and dropped, but after that all that will be
left will be bare ivy stems, which can either be left on the tree or
removed after a year or two. Kill any new growth that comes from the
base.

A 60 foot ash tree (just outside the end of my back garden) was suddenly
killed by ivy.

One spring, it had just started to come into leaf, when I noticed they
were withering. I found that the ivy which had been growing up it had
got under the bark (a few feet off the ground), and lifted it -
effectively ring-barking it.

There's another ash about 20 feet away, so I occasionally pop over the
fence and chop any ivy trying to gain a foothold.




You didn't think it might be Ash Die-Back (Chalara fraxinea)??
I believe this disease is reportable.
The poor ivy was probably innocent.
--
Spider
On high ground in SE London
Gardening on heavy clay