Hedera algeriensis

This Algerian ivy, in Latin Hedera algeriensis, is a plant more inclined to be creeping rather than climbing, known to gardeners under its pretty variegated variety 'Gloire de Marengo'. Its large leaves, a bright light green in spring, become dark green in summer. This vigorous species forms a remarkable evergreen ground cover in partially shaded or even shady areas. With a little help, by training it, it will also create a beautiful green tapestry on a fence wall. Ideal for dressing a large slope or the base of a hedge, it withstands summer drought once well established. It is the perfect plant to fight against adventive plants and cover the ground evenly.

Hedera algeriensis is a botanical species native to the Tunisian and Algerian coasts, where it grows up to mountainous areas. Its frost resistance is estimated at -15 °C (5°F) at its lowest. Ivies belong to the Araliaceae family, they are cousins of Ginseng and Fatsias. Its growth is fast, allowing it to cover an area of 8 to 10m² in a few years. Its large oval, triangular, leathery leaves, with slightly marked 3 lobes, have a slightly wavy appearance. They measure up to 20cm (8in) long and 12cm (5in) wide. Those carried by the flowering branches are less lobed than those of sterile branches. They have a light and vibrant green colour in spring, darkening with age. Its reddish branches, partially covered with greyish star-shaped hairs, run on the ground or climb when they encounter an obstacle to cling to. This ivy only produces flowers on the erect fertile stems and branches that have reached the sun. The inflorescence, in umbel form, gathers 13 to 15 flowers with prominent yellowish-green stamens, highly melliferous. After pollination by bees, small blackish, fleshy berries form, which are toxic when ingested. They are sought after by some birds that spread the seeds in the garden, often at the base of 'perching trees'.

Everything suits it, and it suits everything! A statement that sounds like a plea for ivy, a modest but greatly useful plant, although usually frowned upon by gardeners. It must be admitted that it tends to infiltrate everywhere, with the complicity of birds who sow it here and there. On the other hand, it quickly enhances all the difficult areas of the garden neglected by other plants, in the sun or even in the shade, in a soil full of roots, dry in summer, limestone, clayey. The luxuriant vegetation of Algerian ivy effectively and perfectly covers the ground, eventually discouraging adventive plants. Like a mulch, it helps maintain soil moisture in summer without harming well-established shrubs and trees. When trained, it has a slightly trailing drapery habit. For example, associate it with periwinkles, Pachysandra terminalis, and climbing clematis 'The President' to create a large original and colourful ground cover on a slope.

Did you know?

The flowering of ivy is an excellent source of food for bees in late summer or autumn. Even though their reputation as destroyers is well established, ivies have protected old dilapidated walls more than they have destroyed them; it is the uprooting of this plant firmly anchored in the crevices that causes the masonry to collapse, while the plant maintains its integrity.