Outdoor Climbing Ivy Dying I have climbing ivy on the side of my house that has been healthy for many many years. About 2 weeks ago it started losing leaves. Now it has only about 1/4 of the leaves it had just one month ago. I have never trimmed, fertilized, watered or performed any other form of care. All of the sudden it appears to be dying - very quickly. I do not know what type of ivy except I believe it is a variegated type (leaves are green & white). I live in southern Michigan and we have had some unusual weather this summer but not 100 year type unusual. One thing I do have a lot of is eastern moles. Is it possible they have undermined the root system?
Ivy is usually considered an undesirable invasive alien in the US, so you might be better off without it.
Possibly bacterial leaf spot and stem canker? Was the summer hot and humid? Hedera is not considered an invasive alien in Michigan, one of the few places in the US where it isn't.
We had a very hot July. +90 highs for 10 to 15 days consecutive. We had a very wet late summer. Areas of grass we normally mow every 2 or 3 weeks were green through August and early September. The golf course I belong to normally lays-off the "rough" mowing crew about July 10th but there were days after the 10th the rough was so long you could not find your ball. Additional probably useless info: My Ivy is under an overhang and trapped in a concrete planter which should moderate weather extremes (my assumption). The soil in the planter is extremely dry and often has black ants Do you have pics of bacterial leaf spot or stem canker? If not what should I look for? J Gable
We had a very wet late summer. The vine has been un-attended for the last 6 years with much drier summer conditions and been healthy.
Have a pic you could post? If the leaves are drying up from the edges, then drying out and falling off, then there is the possibilty of being root bound combined with drought. Which could aid in contracting some Blight, generally leaving the leaves more blistered looking. I am only taking some pot shots off the top of my head. But I have seen Ivy take sudden serious damage from drought. Every year is different, depending on moisture the plant gets all year can effect how the plant does during the summer heat the following season.
