Is ivy good or bad for trees?

On Good Friday 2025 I went for an evening walk in the Weald of West Sussex, an area of ancient woodland 30 miles to the south of London.

Is ivy (Hedera helix) bad for trees? Is it a parasite? Does it suck the blood of trees? Does ivy get framed for tree murder?

I worked in woodland management for 10 years and I learned a thing or two in that time.

It's complicated, but there's a lot of misinformation. Info covered here:

• What ivy looks like
• The ecology of ivy
• Managing ivy on trees
• Myths and misinformation about ivy
• When people commit crimes against ivy(!)
• Wildlife supported by ivy

This episode was recorded experimentally on my phone to see how that works - sorry for the odd bip and bop of the microphone peaking.

Further reading: I posted this blog about ivy back in 2013 - Why do people hate ivy?

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Thanks for listening.