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Hedera (Old Latin name for the Ivy)
(the old Latin name for the Ivy, used by Virgil and Pliny). Ivy. ORD. Araliaceae. A genus, as now limited, containing but a couple of species of tall climbing shrubs, of which the one--in one or other of its numberless forms--is widely distributed throughout the Northern hemisphere, and the second confined to Australia. Flowers polygamous; umbels paniculate. Leaves undivided, lobed or pinnate, compound. Few plants are more serviceable in both large and small gardens than the old-fashioned Ivy, scarcely any situation being unsuitable for it. In a good rich soil, growth is much more rapid than in a poor one; and strong plants, grown first in pots before placing out, well repay for the extra preparation thus made, by covering their allotted space in a much shorter time. Ivy is now extensively used to cover open railings, as an arbour, as an edging plant, as a "screen" for a drawing-room, for hanging baskets, and in several other ways. When established, it is advisable to clip off all the old leaves annually, about April, as a close growth is thereby induced, and the old foliage is soon replaced by new. Propagation is readily effected by cuttings of any moderately firm young shoots, inserted in pots, or in the open ground, preferably in autumn. The tree forms and their numerous sports are grafted, any common strong-growing climbing form being used as a stock. The others may also be grafted, and the rarer variegated ones usually are, as this method of increase is a much more rapid one than cuttings. If cuttings are inserted in heat, and kept shaded until roots are formed, good plants are obtained in much less time than when placed in a cold frame, or in the open air.
H. australiana (Australian). fl., umbels pedunculate, with the peduncles almost verticillate along the elongated branches of a large, loose, terminal panicle. l. large, pinnate, the rachis articulate; leaflets few, ovate, oval-oblong or ovate-lanceolate, shortly acuminate, often above 6in. long, smooth and shining, but prominently veined. Queensland. A small, quite glabrous, green-house tree.
H. canescens (hoary). A synonym of H. Helix algeriensis. H. Cavendishii (Cavendish's). A synonym of H. Helix marginata minor. H. cordata (heart-shaped). A synonym of H. Helix scutifolia. H. elegantissima (most elegant). A synonym of H. Helix marginata rubra. H. grandifolia (large-leaved). A synonym of H. Helix canariensis. H. Helix. Common Ivy. fl. yellowish-green; borders of the calyx entire; petals five, broad and short; stamens five. Autumn. l. thick and shining, ovate, angular, or three or five-lobed; those of the barren stems usually much more divided than the upper ones. Western and Southern Europe, Northern Africa, and West Central Asia; extending over the whole of Britain. Of the innumerable forms, the following are the best:
H. H. algeriensis (Algerian).* l. yellowish-green, varying from entire broad-ovate or orbicular to a peculiar rounded three-lobed form. A fine rapid-growing variety, with large leaves of a cheerful green. SYN. H. viridis (S. H. Ivy, 99). There is a variegated form of this, which, although not particularly attractive in a young state, is handsome when thoroughly established. SYN. H. canescens.
H. H. arborescens (arborescent). This is the "tree" form of the common native Ivy of our woods and hedge banks. There are sub-varieties, with golden and silver variegation, and one with yellow berries.
H. H. aurantia (orange).* l. like those of H. H. chrysocarpa, but fruits of a beautiful reddish-orange colour. (R. H. 1884, 84.) H. H. canariensis (Canary Islands). Irish Ivy. This is the common large-leaved climbing Ivy--the best of all for quickly clothing walls, or for forming a green carpet under trees or on banks where grass, &c., refuses to grow. l. deep green, ususally five-lobed; terminal lobe largest. The fertile state of this, i.e., that which has outgrown the climbing stage, and produces flowers and fruit, has entire ovate leaves, and is propagated by grafting on the type; it is generally known in nurseries under the name of H. H. arborescens. SYN. H. grandifolia. There is a variegated form of this, but it is very apt to revert to the type.
H. H. chrysocarpa (golden-fruited).* l. smallish, sometimes nearly triangular and three-lobed; central lobe frequently prolonged, with a few sharp lobes or notches; colour greyish-green; principal veins lined with markings of a lighter shade. A quick-growing climber.
H. H. conglomerata (crowded).* A marked, slow-growing, erect variety, with small, wavy leaves, and very short internodes. An excellent subject for rockwork.
H. H. cuspidata minor (smaller cuspidate). l. uniformly three-lobed, the lobes equal and crenated; colour a deep rich glossy green, with whitish veins. A pretty small-leaved variety, with bright reddish-purple leaf-stalks, and stems purplish when young.
H. H. deltoidea (deltoid). l. bluntly deltoid, blackish-green, changing in autumn to a dull purplish-bronze. Stem purplish, rather stout. A distinct wall Ivy. (S. H. Ivy, 75.) H. H. dentata (toothed). A large handsome Ivy, somewhat like H. H. Raegneriana, but with less glossy leaves, which are not unfrequently distinctly toothed.
H. H. digitata (digitate). l. more decidedly digitate than in most other Ivies, blackish-green, with whitish veins. A rather vigorous grower, and an excellent Ivy for walls. H. H. Caenwoodiana is a plant which scarcely differs (if at all) from H. H. digitata.
H. H. Donerailensis (Donerail's).* A very pretty, small-leaved form, with leaves which assume a dull purple-brown colour in winter. A neat, compact plant, of medium rate of growth, good for walls, or for pot culture. H. H. Glymii (Glym's). l. varying in form from regular ovate to long wedge-shaped, many of them being obscurely three-lobed; colour a very glossy, deep dull green. A fine and distinct form, of a wiry habit of growth. One of the best for pot culture.
H. H. gracilis (slender). l. usually three-lobed; colour rather light dull green, richly bronzed in autumn. Stems wiry, purplish. A very pretty variety for covering a wall or a tree stump. (S. H. Ivy, 66.) H. H. lobata major (larger-lobed). l. three to five-lobed (in old plants, large), deep glossy green. A good, vigorous grower.
H. H. lucida (glossy). l. frequently deltoid, glossy; larger ones, in vigorous plants, with from three to five somewhat indistinct lobes. A fast grower, suitable for clothing walls and tree stumps, or for pot culture. H. H. luteola (yellowish-tinted). l. from broadly ovate to irregular rhomboid, occasionally three-lobed; stems and petioles usually green, sometimes slightly purplish; central parts dark green, mottled with grey; margin broad, of a yellowish cream colour. A fine tree Ivy, of robust habit, and an excellent form for pot culture.
H. H. marginata (margined). l. bluntly triangular; ground colour dull green, margined with creamy-white, brilliantly striped with red or pink in autumn. A somewhat slow-growing form. (S. H. Ivy, 78, 88.) H. H. marginata aurea (golden-margined). l. elongate triangular, bordered with faint orange-yellow, turning to red. An excellent Ivy for walls. H. H. marginata minor (lesser margined). A pretty but slow-growing form, with smaller leaves than H. H. marginata. Not vigorous enough for walls, but a desirable plant for cultivation in pots. SYN. H. Cavendishii. H. H. marginata rubra (red-margined). This differs from H. H. marginata in the bright deep rosy-red hue of the extreme edge of the leaf; the red colour does not appear until autumn, and disappears in spring. A slow-growing variety. SYNS. H. elegantissima, H. tricolor.
H. H. marmorata (marbled). A large-leaved form, of vigorous habit, with irregular blotches of a creamy-white colour. Good for walls or rough rockwork. Another and very distinct sub-variety is marmorata minor, with much smaller leaves. The variegation of this, too, is less apt to "run out" than that of the larger form.
H. H. palmata (palmate). l. medium-sized, three to five-lobed; colour a dull deep green. This, in a young state, much resembles H. digitata, but, when mature, is distinct enough to deserve a varietal name. A neat, but rather slow grower. (S. H. Ivy, 75.) H. H. pellucida (translucent). l. medium size, bluntly quadrangular, mottled with green and white, or white and semitransparent. Young stems red. Habit robust.
H. H. purpurea (purple). A climbing Ivy with leathery leaves like those of H. Raegneriana, but of a purplish colour.
H. H. Raegneriana (Raegner's).* l. large, dark green, leathery, broadly cordate. A handsome and distinct variety, of vigorous habit. The arborescent form of this is the most striking of all the tree Ivies. H. H. rhombea (rhomboid).* l. rhomboid, green, narrowly margined with creamy-white. A distinct form of medium, or, rather, small size, and of somewhat slow growth.
H. H. sagittaefolia (arrow-leaved). l. usually bluntly three-lobed, the central lobe projecting forward in the form of a letter V; colour a dull dark green, with a few patches of blackish-bronze, which change, in autumn, to a rich purplish-bronze; principal veins light green. A free grower, of wiry habit. (S. H. Ivy, 69.) H. H. scutifolia (shield-shaped-leaved). l. medium size, roundish triangular, or obscurely three-lobed, dull green; veins obscurely marked. A distinct variety, but not a robust grower. SYN. H. cordata. (S. H. Ivy, 74.) H. H. variegata (variegated). This, one of the numerous variegated forms of our native Ivy, has lighter green leaves, margined and blotched with creamy-white. It keeps very constant, and, although not so quick a grower or so handsome as some others, is well worth a place against a wall or an old tree trunk.
H. H. Willseana (Wills's). This is a dark-leaved form, nearly allied to H. H. lobata major, from which it differs in the veins being less distinctly marked, and in the colour being much darker in the summer, and in winter deepening to almost black. SYN. H. nigra. (S. H. Ivy, 62 and 72.) H. nigra (black). A synonym of H. Helix Willseana.
H. tricolor (three-coloured). A synonym of H. Helix marginata rubra. H. viridis (green). A synonym of H. Helix algeriensis.