Is Ivy taking over the planet?

What we are being colonosed by is - mistletoe - . When we moved here nearly 30 years ago there was no mistletoe to be seen anywhere. but we first began to notice the odd clump about 10 years ago and now it seems that every tree in this generously wooded village has up to a dozen balls of mistletoe in it.

I assume it is caused by subtle changes to the micro climate caused by climate change.

Yes I notice this in some woodland areas, though not all.
My own garden has ivy growing up many trees. I was told by a tree expert that it doesn't kill the tree but if allowed to take over the canopy, it can make the tree top heavy and liable to fall down so it's best to cut the ivy away at the base.

It's taking over around here, and the worst of it is, I'm the culprit!

Ivy likes damp murky weather, that’s probably why there’s so much of it. I spend hours preventing it colonising the walls and fences in my garden, it’s a damn nuisance!

I really dislike Ivy it takes over it spoils brickwork and some folk are allergic to it
Horrid stuff

I agree that’s it’s virtually unstoppable, I seem to be always removing or cutting it back.
It amazes me when I see pots of Ivy being sold in garden centres for £4.99.
I could make a fortune.

We have ivy growing on several trees in the garden. It only kills them, apparently, if it smothers the tree's leaves and it can't photosynthsise - or if it causes the tree to fall, as Grammaretto says.

Although we'll limit how many trees it colonises, it is great for birds, providing winter food and shelter. Lots of birds are nesting or roosting in the ivy on our trees. So is an annoying grey squirrel...

Same here but I’ve declared war on it, cut out as much as I can and a squirt of roundup on the cut end, no idea if it will work, anyone else got a better idea?.

Just be careful to wear gloves when dealing with ivy. After a weekend we’d often get people at the doctors suffering from problems due to handling the stuff.

In my garden it is! I think it’s all the wet. Also never ever buy Vinca Jenny unless you want to cover your whole garden and kill everything in its path.

It certainly does its best to take over our garden, but a savage pruning now and then puts it in its place.

I actually like ivy but enjoy pulling it off stone gateposts
Apparently if you wish to use weed killer you mix glyphosate with paraffin and spray in the winter no idea if it works

I do think ivy can kill trees if the tree is old and weak. I planted. Gold leaf ivy up our bramble apple tree, it was only allowed to grow up short trunk but the tree fief. It was an old tree mind you, part of the ancient orchard that this small estate was built on. I regretted that planting the ivy but perhaps the tree was on it way out already.

I’ve been concerned about this for many years as most of the trees around here are smothered in Ivy. Then I heard a programme where some “experts” said there was no need to remove Ivy as it did no damage.

I am convinced that it DOES damage trees though and we were out at the weekend and my husband commented there was hardly a tree not covered in Ivy.

It may be invasive, but it’s very good for wildlife. Birds can nest in it, insects can hide in it, and the ivy on the walls of my old garden was always covered in butterflies in late summer - they like the flowers.

I love having ivy in the garden but I keep it to limited height and growth by trimming and cutting off at the base. Robins especially use it as look out points.

We have a wooded area nearby which is now overrun with ivy underfoot and spreading rapidly up trees.

It's not ivy that's taken over here, it's *&##π¥ honeysuckle! Not mine, it's spread from a neighbour's garden and, if I don't keep on top of it, it'll spread its tentacles around all my shrubs, across the yard and up the house walls! I have nightmares about going on holiday and coming home to find the doors inaccessible under this green covering....

I've just been outside, cutting down little bits of ivy, which are intertwined with honeysuckle, and four bats flew out!

It is excellent for wildlife

Yes, destroying my hedges and far more unmanageable

Maybe the weather these days suits it more

My new hedges are being ruined by the Ivy in my neughbours garden, combine that with her leylandi causing shade in my garden, destroying my plants aaargh.

I don’t know. Is she?

Can you have a word RosiesMaw. I get on with most creeping things but Ivy - not so much

We used to trim back the ivy on our ancient back garden wall and my friend’s goats love it.