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THE LIBRARY

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THE UNIVERSITY
OF CALIFORNIA

GIFT OF

Frederick Law Olmsted
the Younger

V

FROM THE COLLECTION OF

F L. OLMSTED JR.
LOWTHORPE SCHOOL

LONDON • GROOMBRIDGE £< SONS

P?

THE IVY,

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A MONOGRAPH;

COMPRISING THE

HISTORY, USES, CHARACTERISTICS, AND AFFINITIES

OF THE PLANT,

AND A

Jules in xwlthratkm*

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&ist of all

BY

Author of " Rustic Adornments for Homes of Taste," " The Fern Gwden," $"c. 8fc.

ILLUSTRATED WITH COLOURED PLATES AND WOOD ENGRAVINGS.

LONDON:

GKOOMBKIDGE& SONS,
5, PATEENOSTEE EOW.

MDCCCLXXII.

LONDON :

BARRETT AND SONS, PRINTERS,
MARK LANE.

TO

JOSEPH JOHN FOX, ESQ., M.K.C.S.,

V

AND FELLOW OF THE STATISTICAL SOCIETY,

THIS WORK ON "THE IVY" IS, WITH AGREEABLE REMEMBRANCES AND

THANKFUL ACKNOWLEDGMENTS OF MANY PERSONAL FAVOURS,

WITH HIS PERMISSION, DEDICATED,

BY
HIS -FRIEND AND NEIGHBOUR,

SHIRLEY HIBBERD.

STOKE NEWINGTON,
April, 1872.

^^^^

0 N TE N T)5.

I. PREFATORY OBSERVATIONS ... ... ... ... ... ...

II. HISTORICAL AND LITERARY MEMORANDA ... ... ... ... 5

III. THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PLANT ... ... ... ... ... 17

IY. USES OF THE IVY ... ... ... ... ... 31

V. THE CULTIVATION OF THE IVY ... ... ... ... ... ... 40

VI. THE SPECIES AND VARIETIES OF IVY ... ... .., ... 51

VII. DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES :

1. Green-leaved climbing forms of Hedera helix ... ... ... ... 62

2. Variegated climbing forms of H. helix ... ... ... ... 77

3. Green-leaved arborescent forms of H. helix ... ... ... ... 90

4. Variegated arborescent forms of H. helix ... ... ... ... 93

5. Green-leaved climbing forms of H. gran difolia (canariensis) ... ... 96

6. Variegated climbing forms of H. grandifolia ... ... ... 98

7. Green-leaved arborescent forms of H. grandifolia ... ... ... 104

8. Variegated arborescent forms of H. grandifolia ... ... ... 104

9. Green-leaved climbing forms of H. coriacea (colchica) ... ... ... 105

10. Green-leaved arborescent forms of H. coriacea ... ... ... 107

VIII. SELECTIONS OF IVIES, COMPRISING THE MOST DISTINCT AND BEAUTIFUL IN THE

SEVERAL SECTIONS 108

THE COLOURED

IN the descriptions which follow, the Ivies are named in accordance with the descriptive
enumeration which commences at page 62.

THE FRONTISPIECE contains accurate representations of five varieties of Ivies. The large
leaf in the centre is Viridis, the small spray in the centre of the leaf is Chrysophylla, the spray
on the left is Marginata minor, the spray on the right is Marginata aurea. The border
consists of Minima, the smallest leaved variety in the author's collection,

THE ORNAMENTAL TITLE contains portraits of four Ivies. That at the top on the left hand
is Nebulosa ; at the bottom, left hand, Pellucida ; at the top, right hand, Dealbata ; at the
bottom, right hand, Succinata.

THE PLATE FACING PAGE 62 contains portraits of seven varieties. The large mottled leaf
in the centre is Maculata ; the large leaf, half cream colour and half dart green, is Pallida ; the
dark bronzed leaf above is Lucida ; the yellow leaf to the left of it is Aurea ; the dark leaf above
the last is Nigra ; the mottled leaf at the bottom of the plate is Chrysophylla, which is also
represented in the frontispiece.

THE PLATE AT PAGE 78 contains portraits of eight varieties. The large leaf in the centre
is Canescens, the strikingly variegated form of Viridis ; the large leaf above it is Variegata, and the
small mottled leaf above that is Discolor ; the creamy-edged leaf above Canescens, on the left, is
Argentea minor, and the red-edged leaf above that is Marginata major; the large leaf at the
bottom of the plate, on the right hand, is Striata, and the small leaf laid upon it is Marginata
rubra ; the other leaf at the bottom of the plate is Luteola, one of the most beautiful of the
tree ivies.

i

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Headers of this work who desire to communicate with the Author, are requested to address
to the Publishers, as the Author is ever anxious to maintain the strictest privacy.

The Author's garden is not open to public inspection; it is, in the strictest sense of the
word, a private garden ; and, moreover, it is devoted chiefly to experimental purposes, which are
utterly unsuited for the entertainment of visitors, or to afford them any useful information.

These notices are rendered necessary by the pertinacious kindness of strangers, who cherish
the belief that authors of books on horticultural subjects are of necessity traders in plants, and
exhibitors of themselves and their gardens. The Author of this work has no trading interests to
promote, and desires to enjoy complete privacy.

L— PKEFATOKY OBSEKVATIONS.

The sun, the moon, the stars, the seas, the hills and the plains —
Are not these, 0 Soul, the Vision of Him who reigns?"

TENNYSON'S " HIGHER PANTHEISM."

HE object of the present work is to present
to public notice a few particulars of the
history, habits, and uses of that well-known
plant, the IVY. The author has, for some
fifteen or more years past, given especial
attention to this subject, and has by various
means, such as ivy-hunting in the woods,
purchase from gardens, and the practice of
cross-breeding, obtained upwards of two hun-
dred varieties of the plant, many of them
presenting the most diverse characteristics,
and maintaining those characteristics when
subjected for a considerable length of time
to cultivation. For the purposes of this
work, a selection has been made of the most
distinct and beautiful varieties, including only

such as have proved to be constant, and apparently worthy to be named and
cultivated.

In inviting attention to the varieties figured and described in the following
pages, it is a pleasure to be enabled to announce that a considerable proportion 7
of them are known in nursery gardens, and may be obtained in the usual way ^
as articles of trade. It was with the view, chiefly, of improving the trade ^5
collections that, in the year 1869, the author sold to Mr. Charles Turner, of
the Royal Nurseries, Slough, examples of fifty of the most distinct garden

'^^^^K^^^^^^

THE IVY.

^

varieties that were considered suitable to put into commerce. Before tins was
done, however, a careful revision of the names, and a close comparison of all
known garden ivies was made, in order to eliminate from the catalogue a mass
of confusing jargon, and remove from the garden every named variety that lacked
distinctness of character. This proved a laborious though most agreeable task,
and it is hoped that the results herein offered to public notice will prove
sufficiently interesting to justify the author in having bestowed so much time
and thought upon the subject.

It is proper, in these prefatory observations, to indicate to what extent
the author is indebted to other than his own labours and resources. As to
the collection then; many of the varieties have been obtained from gardens
again and again, but usually under different names, and those names too
often so utterly unsuitable as to convey false impressions of the plants they
were applied to. Others have been obtained direct from woods and ruins,
where nature had produced and planted them in her own way ; and others,
again, have been raised in the author's garden, and represent the capabilities
of the ivy for variation as the result of crossing. As to the names, there
was but one course possible — so it seemed, at least — and that was, to abolish
them without hesitation in every case in which they had a cumbrous form,
or were misleading, or were other than descriptive. The result is, that only
some half-dozen of the original garden names remain, and the whole of the
names in the enumeration now presented are framed upon a system the two
principal requirements of which are, that they must be as simple as possible,
and in every case indicative of the most striking characteristics of the plants
to which they are applied. The rude handling to which the names heretofore
recognised have been subjected, will, perhaps, arouse a shadow of indignation ; but
the reader who is familiar with the incongruities and absurdities of botanical
nomenclature, and especially the more strictly horticultural branch of it, will only
need to glance through the following pages to be convinced that in a work of this
kind a new and systematic nomenclature was actually needed to save it from the
guilt of making confusion worse confounded.

In a paper on " Garden Ivies," contributed to the Linnasan Society by the
author, in 1869, the necessity for a revision of the names was thus explained : —

" In adopting or inventing names for the most distinctive kinds in the
collection, an endeavour has been made to harmonise the requirements of the
cultivator with the usages of the botanist. For garden purposes, one descriptive
name, which can be easily remembered, or, at all events, easily associated with

PREFATORY OBSERVATIONS.

the plant it represents, is the great desideratum. Commemorative names are
simply useless as aids to identification, and geographical names are nearly
useless when good ; and as they are generally bad, they are also generally
objectionable. Hedera Canariensis may be cited as an example. It is the
Canary Islands ivy of the botanist, the Irish ivy of the horticulturist, the
African ivy of the traveller. The necessity of a revision of the nomenclature of
the Ivies may be established by a glance at any garden list of them. Thus, for
example, we find, even in the best catalogues, such names as Hedera helix
arborescens baccifera lutea. Now, to say nothing about scientific proprieties, such |
names spread over a collection of a hundred or so varieties constitute a painful
burlesque of botanical nomenclature. The plan I have adopted makes an end of
all such difficulties ; it provides for every distinctive kind a descriptive name,
which can be taken up into its proper connections by the botanist — if the botanist
will adopt it — while for the use of the gardener it is valuable, both as a key to the
character of the plant, as well as a suggestion of its existence. To carry out this
plan in its entirety, I have been compelled to assign to two out of the three
reputed species of Hedera new specific designations, which I trust the botanist
will allow, if only in aid of an experiment which has for its principal objects
simplicity and utility in the nomenclature of plants. Thus, ' the Canary ' or
1 Irish ' ivy is in this classification designated Hedera grandifolia ; and the
Colchican ivy, more generally known as H. Ecegneriana, is named H. coriacea."

For a full comparison of established garden varieties, collections were
obtained from various quarters, in several cases at the cost of considerable
trouble to those who supplied them. To Messrs. Veitch & Son, of the Royal
Exotic Nurseries, Chelsea ; and to Messrs. Osborn & Son, of the Nurseries,
Fulham ; thanks are especially due for their contribution to the collection of all
the varieties they have cultivated or could obtain. To J. J. Fox, Esq., of
Stoke Newington, to whom this work is dedicated, the author is indebted for
assistance in the revision of the nomenclature, and gladly renders hearty thanks.
The illustrations, both in colour and on wood, are from the pencil of Alfred ^
Slocombe, Esq., to whom also thanks are due for the patient care he has taken
from first to last to gratify the author's whim and to present lifelike portraits X<
of the pets selected for especial distinction. If it should appear to any that the
publication of this work is a rash proceeding, they will be spared the necessity
of wasting pity on the author by the announcement with which these prefatory
observations will conclude, that he is more concerned to do justice to his hobby
than to derive profit from this undertaking. That the sale of this book should be

THE IVY.

sufficient even to reimburse the outlay incurred in its mechanical production, is
more than can be reasonably anticipated, but it is hoped that the endeavour will be
appreciated by those who are equal to the perception of its spirit, and competent
to criticise the details in which it is expressed. The well-known passage in
Claudian enunciates this view most happily, and the indulgence of the reader is
solicited that it may be allowed to stand here as representing the feeling with
which this undertaking was entered upon —

" Hie patet ingeniis campus : certusque merenti
Stat favor : ornatur propriis industria donis."

a

Oh, a dainty plant is the Ivy green,

That creepeth o'er ruins old !
Of right choice food are his meals I ween,

In his cell so lone and cold.
The wall must be crumbled, the stone decayed,

To pleasure his dainty whim :
And the mouldering dust that years have made

Is a merry meal for him.

Creeping where no life is seen,
A rare old plant is the Ivy green.

&£.

II.— HISTOEICAL AND LITEEAEY MEMOEANDA.

' Here stood a shatter'd arcliway plumed with fern ;
And here had fallen a great part of a tower,
Whole, like a crag that tumbles from the cliff,
And like a crag was gay with wilding flowers :
And high above a piece of turret stair,
Worn by the feet that now were silent, wound
Bare to the sun, and monstrous ivy stems
Claspt the grey walls with hairy-fibred arms,
And suck'd the joining of the stones, and look'd
A knot, beneath, of snakes ; aloft, a grove."

TENNYSON'S " GERAINT AND ENID."

the earliest days of civilisation, the
Ivy acquired renown by its association
with religious rites and social usages.
Though of small value in the arts, it
would attract attention by its beauty,
and its evident fitness to serve as an
emblem of the earth's productiveness,
and of the health and length of days
that men desire. The wild ivy of our
woods, though one of the most beautiful
of sylvan plants, is so much inferior
in beauty to the ivies of Egypt and
Greece, that it is impossible to connect
the plant with its history in a way to
satisfy the mind unless we take into
account that the ivy of classic lore is a
more lordly plant than ours — a repre-
sentative of power as well as of beauty, presenting a wondrous wealth of highly-
polished leafage, and crowned with gracious corymbs of golden berries.

The most renowned of all the ancient usages in which the Ivy bore a con-

6

THE IVY.

spicuous and necessary part, were those which accompanied the worship of Bacchus.
But therein we behold the degradation of a nobler idea, for Bacchus claimed the
ivy only as the base transmutation of Osiris, the wonderful traveller and conqueror,
the builder of cities, the instructor of mankind in husbandry and agriculture. The
Egyptian lawgiver first adopted the ivy, or first had the ivy assigned to him, as a
symbol suggestive of his benefactions to mankind, and a reminder of the reverence
due to his name and authority. Hence the ivy was called in the Egyptian language
chen-osiris, "the plant of Osiris"; and the ivy-wreathed thyrsus, which in after
days became the sign of licentious orgies, was originally the emblem of virtue,
prosperity, and beneficence.1 The consecration of the ivy to Osiris is amply
illustrated in Egyptian sculptures and hieroglyphics. It appears that three plants
at least, in addition to the vine, were associated with observances commemorative
of the great hero of the Egyptian mythology. The ivy, however, was the plant
required, and these others were employed as substitutes at times or in places when
the proper emblem could not be obtained. Pliny records that Solanum dul-
camara* the common bitter sweet, was used in Egypt for chaplets in place of

ivy, and the sculptures indicate that Periploca secamone was employed in the same
manner. 3

11 At Medeenet Haboo is a remarkable instance of the ceremony of carrying the
sacred boat of Pthah-Sokari-Osiris, which may represent the funeral of Osiris. It
is frequently introduced in the sculptures ; and in one of the tombs of Thebes this
solemnity occurs, which, though on a smaller scale than on the walls of Medeenet
Haboo, offers some interesting peculiarities. First comes the boat, carried, as
usual, by several priests, superintended by the pontiff, clad in a leopard-skin ; after
which two hieraphori, each bearing a long staff, surmounted by a hawk ; then a
man beating the tambourine, behind whom is a flower with the stalk bound round
with ivy (or the periploca, which so much resembles it). These are followed by
two hieraphori (or bearers of holy emblems), carrying each a staff with a jackal on
the top, and another carrying a flower ; behind whom is a priest turning round to
offer incense to the emblem of Nofre-Atmoo. The latter is placed horizontally
upon six columns, between each of which stands a human figure, with uplifted arms,
either in the act of adoration or aiding to support the sacred emblem, and behind
it is an image of the king kneeling ; the whole borne on the usual staves by several

k

1 Plutarch, in " Isis and Osiris," establishes the identity of Osiris and Bacchus.

2 Pliny calls it Strychnum ortrychos.

3 So also Diodorus, I. 17.

w

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4

HISTORICAL AND LITERARY MEMORANDA.

priests, attended by a pontiff in his leopard-skin dress. In this ceremony, as in
some of the tales related of Osiris, we may trace those analogies which led the
Greeks to suggest the resemblance between that deity and their Bacchus ; as the
tambourine, the ivy-bound flower or thyrsus, and the leopard-skin, which last
recalls the leopards that drew his car." *

It has perplexed the critics to account for the constant association of the ivy
with the rites of Bacchus, and the only clue to an explanation that could be found
was its reputed power to modify the intoxicating effect of wine — a power which it
appears to possess in no greater degree than any other plant that might be selected ;
for to steep a mass of herbage in wine must at once dilute it by the admixture of
crude vegetable juices, and promote the evaporation from it of alcohol. But, if we
adopt Plutarch's view, Bacchus comes to us provided with the vestments of an
elder god, and, as the father planted the vine and secured the praises of men, the
son will promote the drinking of the li blood of the grape," and obtain the praises
of men less worthily. Pliny insists that the first garlands were used by Bacchus,
and were composed of ivy ;2 " and in later ages they commonly made use of ivy
and amethystus as preservatives against drunkenness."3 We have but to read the
Greek dramatists to make abundant acquaintance with the Bacchanalian orgies and
the relation of our plant to them. In the " Bacchas " of Euripedes the chorus
thus invokes the god —

" In all thy golden-glowing bloom

Come from Olympus, Bacchus, come,
Thy thyrsus shake, and check his savage rage ! 4
Where, Bacchus, dost thou now delight

To lead thy hallowed band ?
On Nysa's savage-nursing height
Shakest thou thine ivy wand ?" 5

Virgil takes his J^neis to the court of King Latinus. The wandering prince
is promised the king's only daughter Lavina, and a terrible stir follows in opposition
to the match, the leader in it being the queen-mother Amata. Finding the king
immovable,

1 Wilkinson's " Ancient Egyptians," I. 284.

2 Lib. xvi. c. 1.

3 Potter's " Grecian Antiquities."

4 This refers to Pentheus of the " dragon brood," who was torn in pieces by his mother and
sisters for despising the rites of Bacchus.

5 Potter's " Euripedes," Y. 598—604.

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THE IVY.

" She feign'd the rites of Bacchus ; cry'd aloud,
And to the buxom god the virgin vow'd.
' Euoi ! 0 Bacchus ! ' thus began the song ;
And ' Euoi ' answered all the female throng.
' O virgin worthy thee alone ! ' she cried ;
' 0 worthy thee alone ! ' the crew replied.
* For thee she feeds her hair, she leads thy dance,
' And with thy winding ivy wreaths her lance.' " *

It is in connection with the worship of Bacchus that the only mention of the
ivy occurs in the sacred books of the Hebrews. " Mention of this plant is made
only in 2 Maccabees vi. 7, where it is said that the Jews were compelled, when the
feast of Bacchus was kept, to go in procession, carrying ivy to this deity, to whom
it is well known this plant was sacred. Ivy, however, though not mentioned by
name, has a peculiar interest to the Christian, as forming the 'corruptible crown'
(1 Cor. ix. 25), for which the competitors at the great Isthmian games contended,
and which St. Paul so beautifully contrasts with the ' incorruptible crown ' which
shall hereafter encircle the brows of those who run worthily the race of this mortal
life."2 This is the passage : "And in the day of the king's birth, every month
they were brought by bitter constraint to eat of the sacrifices ; and when the feast
of Bacchus was kept, the Jews were compelled to go in procession to Bacchus,
carrying ivy."

Whether Pliny is right or wrong as to the first use of garlands, it is certain
that they were largely employed by the Greeks and Romans ; but by the Greeks
more especially in religious ceremonies and political and social celebrations. It
concerns us only to inquire into those garlands in which our plant had a place, and
undoubtedly the connection is close enough between garlands and ivies and cups
and their customs. " The cups used by the ancient Greeks were very plain, and
agreeable to the rest of their furniture, being usually composed of wood or earth.
Afterwards, when they began to imitate the pride and vanity of the Asiatics, their
cups were made of silver, gold, and other costly materials." " The cups

were compassed about with garlands, and filled up to the brim."3 The ivy, we may
be sure, had a conspicuous place in the garlands. They must have been drinking
cups of the old Greek model that Virgil had in mind when writing his third

^

1 Dryden's " JEneis," VII. 542—549.

2 Smith's " Dictionary of the Bible," III.

3 Potter's " Grecian Antiquities."

Appendix A. to vol. i. p. Ixi.

HISTORICAL AND LITERARY MEMORANDA.

Pastoral, and that he should have them garlanded with ivy is the proper com-
pliment of Menalcas to the social usages of his own day —

" Two bowls I have, well turn'd, of beechen wood;
Both by divine Alcimedon were made ;
To neither of them yet the lip is laid ;
The lids are ivy, grapes in clusters lurk
Beneath the carving of the curious work." 1

The origin of the ivy itself, as taught by Ovid, is scarcely worthy of notice ;
for, at the best, it is but fanciful foolishness ; but as it stands apart from the
ceremonies and customs just alluded to, space may here be found for a brief
quotation without bringing upon this humble endeavour the charge of needless
diffuseness. In the fourth book of the Metamorphoses occurs the story of Alcithoe
and her sisters transformed to bats, by the power of Bacchus, as a punishment for
their scorn of the bibulous deity. As translated by Mr. Eusden, the passage reads
^ as follows : —

" But Mineus' daughters still their tasks pursue,

To wickedness most obstinately true ;

^ At Bacchus still they laugh, when all around,

1 Unseen, the timbrels hoarse were heard to sound.

Saffron and Myrrh their fragrant odours shed,
And now the present Deity they dread.
Strange to relate ! here ivy first was seen,
Along the distaff crept the wondrous green ;
Then sudden, springing vines began to bloom,
And the soft tendrils curl around the loom ;
While purple clusters dangling from on high,
Tinged the wrought purple with a second dye." 2

Eeferences to the ivy in the classics are so numerous that they might afford
an agreeable subject for an extensive analysis, which would probably afford much
entertainment and some little instruction. A few of the first that occur to us will
suffice, however, for present purposes. In his fifth Pastoral, Virgil declares that
Daphnis first employed the ivy in commemoration of Bacchus : —

1 Dry den's translation, v. 55. The original text suggests that the fruit of the ivy was a
conspicuous feature of the carving — I

" Lenta quibus torno facili superaddita vitis ^j

a Diffuses edera vestit pallente corymbos."

^ ECLOGA III. 38, 39.

2 Valpy's " Ovid," Book IV. v. 112. ,

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10

THE IVY.

" Fierce tigers Daphnis taught the yoke to bear ;
And first with curling ivy dressed the spear.
Daphnis did rites to Bacchus first ordain ;
And holy revels for his reeling train." 1

The licence of the poet being undefined, Virgil did not hesitate to mingle the
ivy with the laurel in preparing a wreath for " Great Pollio " : —

" Amidst thy laurels let this ivy twine :
Thine was my earliest muse ; my latest shall be thine." a

Horace had the like appreciation of the ivy as a plant of honour, for in his
first ode he glorifies Maecenas by the offer of an ivy-wreath, in token of his grace
and learning : —

" An ivy- wreath, fair learning's prize,
Raises Maecenas to the skies." 3

In the ceremonies of later times our plant has enjoyed more honourable dis-
tinctions. When the early Christians accommodated their celebration of the birth
of Christ to the observances of the feast of Saturn, or to the jubilations of the
Druids, the ivy was mingled in the Christmas garland, and thenceforth acquired a
proper place in pleasant usages that continue to this day. The holly and the ivy
have from the earliest times held the mastery in providing the green garniture of
the Christmas feast, and in many a bright old carol are their virtues celebrated
in connection with the great season of rejoicing in the Christian year. A scrap
from one of these must have place here as a proper link in the chain of evidence
of the historical importance of our plant : —

1 Dryden's translation, v. 27 — 30. In the original the reading is : —
" Daphnis et Armenias curru subjungere tigres
Instituit, Daphnis thiasos inducere Baccho,
Et foliis lentas intexere mollibus hastas,"

ECLOGA V. 29—31.
9 Dryden's translation, v. 17, 18. In the original the reading is : —

" Atque hanc sine tempora circum

Inter victrices ederam tibi serpere lauros."

ECLOGA VIII. 12, 13.
* Francis's translation. In the original the reading is : —

" Te doctarum ederae praemia frontiura
Dis miscent superis."

CARMEN I. 29, 30,

ts*>

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1

HISTORICAL AND LITERARY MEMORANDA. 11

" Ivy hath a lybe ; she laghtit with the cold,
So mot they all hafe that with Ivy hold.

Nay, Ivy ! Nay, hyt shall not.

" Holly hat berys as red as any Eose
The foster the hunters, kepe hem from the doo.
Nay, &c.

" Ivy hath berys as black as any slo ;
There com the oule and ete him as she go.
Nay, &c.

" Holly hath byrdys, aful fayre flok,
The Nyghtyngale, the Poppyngy, the gayntyl Lavyrok.
Nay, &c.

" Good Ivy ! what byrdys ast thou ?
Non but the howlet that kreye ' How ! how ! '
Nay, Ivy, &c." *

That the ivy should be adopted as a tavern sign, and give its name to some
few places, may be considered necessary consequences of its association, first with
Pagan, and afterwards with Christian festivals ; or of the imposing drapery it
supplied to many an edifice or scrap of rock where it had enjoyed full scope for
many years to spread, and hold and beautify with its hale green leafage. To make
an enumeration of the places that have been named in consequence of their rich
garniture of ivy, might prove as tedious to the reader as to the writer, and so it is
hoped one reference of the kind will suffice. Ivy Lane, in the City of London,
was in olden times a place of far higher importance than in the present day, and
took its name from the ivy that grew there on the prebends' houses, "an adjunctive

ornament that can scarcely be imagined by the present residents of the closely
confined neighbourhood." 2

The part our plant has taken in promoting good cheer, and the excesses that

make an ugly fringe to sociality, is full of attraction for those who are curious

about old customs.

The oldest sign borrowed from the vegetable kingdom is the Bush : it was

a bush or bunch of ivy, box, or evergreen, tied to the end of a pole, such as is

"Harleian Manuscripts," 5346, quoted in Hone's "Every-day Book," I. 1598, 1635.
Hone's " Every-day Book," II. 1137.

^* ^f

L'2 THE IVY.

represented in many of the suttlers' tents in the pictures of Wouverman. The
custom came evidently from the Romans, and with it the oft-repeated proverb,
"Good wine needs no bush" (Vinum vendibile hedera non est opus; in Italian,
Al buon vino non bisogna frasca ; in French, a bon vin point d'enseigne). Ivy was
the plant commonly used : " The tavern-ivy clings about my money and kills it,"
says the sottish slave in Massinger's "Virgin Martyr" (act iii. sc. 3). It may
have been adopted as the plant sacred to Bacchus and the Bacchantes ; or perhaps
simply because it is a hardy plant, and long continues green. As late as the
reign of King James I., many inns used it as their only sign. Taylor, the water
poet, in his perambulation of ten shires around London, notes various places
where there is " a taverne with a bush only"; in other parts he mentions "the
sign of the Bush." Even at the present day, " The Bush" is a very general sign
for inns and publichouses ; whilst sometimes it assumes the name of the Ivy Bush
or the Ivy Green (two in Birmingham). In Gloucester, Warwick, and other
counties, where at certain fairs the ordinary booth people and tradesmen enjoy the
privilege of selling liquors without a licence, they hang out bunches of ivy- flowers,
or boughs of trees, to indicate this sale. As far away as the Western States of
North America, at the building of a new village or station, it is no uncommon
thing to see a bunch of hay or a green bough hung from above the "grocery" or
bar-room door, until such time as a superior decoration can be provided. The
bunch being fixed to a long staff was also called the Alepole. Thus, among the
processions of odd characters that came to purchase ale at the Tunnyng of Elinour

Rummyng : —

"Another brought her bedes
Of jet or of coale,
To offer to the Alepole."

These Alepoles, from the very earliest times, continued to enlarge and encroach
upon the public way. The bunch gradually became a garland of flowers of
considerable proportions, whence Chaucer, describing the Sompnour, says : —

"A garlond hadde he sette upon his hede
As gret as it were for an alestake."

Afterwards it became a still more elegant object, as exemplified by the Nag's Head
in Cheapside, in the print of the entry of Marie de Medici. Finally, it appeared
as a crown of green leaves, with a little Bacchus bestriding a tun dangling from it.
Thus the sign was used simultaneously with the bush. " If these houses [ale-
houses] have a boxe-bush or an old post, it is enough to show their profession.

But if they be graced with a signe compleat, it's a signe of a good custome." •
In a masque of 1633, the constituents of a tavern are thus described : " A flamingo
red lattice, seueral drinking roomes, and a backe doore ; but especially a conceited
signe and an eminent bush" " Tavernes are quickly set up ; it is but hanging out
a bush at a nobleman's or an alderman's gate, and 'tis made instantly."2 In a
woodcut from the " Cent Nouvelle Nouvelles," introduced in Wright's " Domestic
Manners," the Bush is suspended from a square board on which the sign was
painted — for in France as well as in England signboard and bush went together —

" La taverne levee
L'enseigne et le bouclion,
La dame bien peignee
Les cheveux en bouchon." 3

Whilst an English host, in u Good News and Bad News," says: " I rather will
take down my bush and sign than live by means of riotous expense." Gradually,
as signs became more costly, the bunch was entirely neglected and the sign alone
remained.4

It is not often that we meet with the ivy in modern poetry, and possibly the
fewness of its obvious characters may account for the rarity with which it has
suggested a metaphor or a fanciful comparison. To the ** poet's eye in a fine
frenzy rolling," the intimate relations between the plant and the scenes it loves
to warm and beautify have been always evident. In the simpering " language
of flowers" it stands well for friendship, with the motto "I die where I am
attached."

The mind given to the perception of analogies will not fail to regard it as
the emblem of immortality and ever-renewing youth ; for 'it gives to death the
countenance of life, ever smiling with health and beauty. Byron's description of
the tomb of Cecilia Metella derives a wonderful richness from the time-defying
ivy, "the garland of eternity": —

" The Country Carbonadoed.'3 By D. Lupton, 1632.
2 Shirley's " Masque of the Triumph of Peace."

Voce Alehouse.

" The tavern opened
With signboard and bush;
The landlady's hair neatly dressed,
Tied up in a knot."

—Chanson Nouvelle des Tavernes et Tavernieres, Fleur des Chansons Nouvelles.
4 Hotten's " History of Sign Boards."

Lyon, 1586.

I

*\

^

I

" There is a stern round tower of other days,
Firm as a fortress with its fence of stone,
Such as an army's baffled strength delays,
Standing with half its battlements alone,
And with two thousand years of ivy grown,
The garland of eternity, where wave
The green leaves over all by time o'erthrown; —
What was this tower of strength ? — within its cave
What treasures lay so lock'd, so hid ? — A woman's grave." *

How striking the contrast between this and the glorious song of " The Ivy
Green," by Charles Dickens, which the world has accepted in joyfulness for an
unfading garland to keep the memory of the writer fresh for ever in the hearts
of men ! And yet, though they so differ in tone, they rest upon the same
observation and breathe the same train of thought —

" Whole ages have fled and their works decay' d,

And nations have scatter' d been;
But the stout old Ivy shall never fade,

From its hale and hearty green.
The brave old plant in its lonely days

Shall fatten upon the past ;
For the stateliest building man can raise
Is the Ivy's food at last.

Creeping on where time has been,
A rare old plant is the Ivy green."

To dissociate the plant from age and ruin and the still staunch memorials of
the past appears to be impossible with modern poets, but their elder brethren
knew the plant for its buxomness, its suggestions of conviviality, and its aid as an
emblem in the manifestation of religious feeling. In " The Excursion," Words-
worth employs it most quaintly in aid of a description of a rustic patriarch —

" He was a peasant of the lowest class :
Grey locks profusely round his temples hung
In clustering curls, like ivy, which the bite
Of winter cannot thin ; the fresh air lodged
Within his cheek, as light within a cloud;
And he returned our greeting with a smile." 2

1 " Childe Harold," Canto IV. stanza 99.

2 "The Excursion," Book VII.

HISTORICAL AND LITERARY MEMORANDA.

15

The same idea occurred to Keats when describing the preparations for the worship
of the " great god Pan "—

" Close after these,

Now coming from beneath the forest trees,

A venerable priest full soberly,

Begirt with ministering looks : alway his eye

Steadfast upon the matted turf he kept,

And after him his sacred vestment swept.

From his right hand there swung a vase, milk-white,

Of mingled wine, out-sparkling generous light;

And in his left he held a basket full

Of all sweet herbs that searching eye could cull :

Wild thyme, and valley -lilies whiter still

Than Leda's love, and cresses from the rill.

His aged head, crown' d with beechen wreath,

Seem'd like a poll of ivy in the teeth

Of winter hoar." 1

Mention of the ivy occurs only four times in all the works of Shakspere,
and he never alludes to it as representing or restoring the " light of other days."
This has been attempted by a later and a feebler pen with some degree of success,
as will be seen by the pleasing verses of Mrs. Hemans that follow : —

Oh ! how could fancy crown with thee,

In ancient days, the god of wine,
And bid thee at the banquet be
Companion of the vine ?
Thy home, wild plant, is where each sound

Of revelry hath long been o'er ;
Where song's full notes once peal'd around,
But now are heard no more.

The Roman, on his battle-plains,

Where kings before his eagles bent,
Entwined thee, with exulting strains,

Around the Victor's tent :
Yet there, though fresh in glossy green
Triumph ally thy boughs might wave,
Better thou lov'st the silent scene,
Around the Victor's grave.

Where sleep the sons of ages flown,

The bards and heroes of the past ; —
Where, through the halls of glory gone,

Murmurs the wintry blast ;
Where years are hastening to efface

Each record of the grand and fair ; —
Thou, in thy solitary grace,

Wreath of the tomb ! art there.

Thou, o'er the shrines of fallen gods,

On classic plains dost mantling spread,
And veil the desolate abodes
And cities of the dead.
Deserted palaces of kings, —

Arches of triumph, long o'erthrown ; —
And all once glorious earthly things,
At length are thine alone.

1 " Endymion," Book I,

16

THE IVY.

Oh ! many a temple, once sublime,

Beneath the blue, Italian sky,
Hath nought of beauty left by time,

Save thy wild tapestry !
And, rear'd 'midst crags and clouds, 'tis thine

To wave where banners waved of yore,
O'er mouldering towers, by lovely Khine,
Cresting the rocky shore.

High from the fields of air, look down

Those eyries of a vanish' d race,
Homes of the mighty, whose renown
Hath pass'd, and left no trace.
But thou art there ! — thy foliage bright,

Unchanged, the mountain storm can brave,
Thou, that wilt climb the loftiest height,
And deck the humblest grave.

The breathing forms of Parian stone,

That rise round grandeur's marble halls,
The vivid hues by painting thrown,

Eich o'er the glowing walls, —
The Acanthus, on Corinthian fanes,

In sculptured beauty waving fair ; —
These perish all — and what remains ?
Thou, thou alone art there !

'Tis still the same — where'er we tread,
The wrecks of human power we see ;
The marvels of all ages fled,

Left to Decay and thee !
And still let man his fabrics rear, —

August in beauty, grace, and strength,
Days pass, thou Ivy never sere,
And all is thine at length !

" Yonder walls, that partly front your town.

Yon towers, whose wanton tops do buss the clouds,
Must kiss their own feet."

TBOILUS AM) CEESSIDA, IV. 5.

Ill— THE CHAEACTEKISTICS OF THE PLANT.

" A wind arose,

And overhead the wandering ivy and vine,
This way and that, in many a wild festoon,
Ran riot, garlanding the gnarled boughs
With bunch and berry and flower thro' and thro'."

TENNYSON'S

CBNONE.'

HATEVEK may be wanting in the several
features of the Ivy, whether of colour, fra-
grance, changeableness, or simple usefulness,
to obtain for it an equal share of admiration
with plants that appeal with stronger em-
phasis to the senses, is amply compensated
by characteristics that afford gratification to
the spiritual vision. The plant does not, in-
deed, lack admirers ; but few, even amongst
the many who profess to be observers of
nature, have made themselves acquainted
with its life history ; that history may not,
indeed, even now be fully recited, but an
attempt will be made to gather a few ma-
terials for the purpose, and set them before
the reader in a manner which it is hoped
will tend to encourage a more general study
of the habits of the plant.

The ivy is a climbing plant. Its nature is to rise above the ground by any
help it can obtain, and it is provided by nature with the means of rising in
the claw-like processes which are produced throughout the entire length of the
stem until it has reached the summit of the object with which, by means of
these holding- claws, it has become attached. It will be explained presently
that these holders are veritable roots ; but, for the present, let us observe the

DENBIGH

V

\ a trailing character. The reason is that the young plants are killed out by the

TwK
* '

ivy on its way from the seed out of which the plant first emerges, to the crowning
^ of tree or tower with its flowering and seed-producing branches, which having
no further need of holding-claws, cease to produce them. In woods where ivies
^ abound myriads of little seedling plants may be discovered, just showing their
glossy leaves above the grass. These leaves are seldom divided, they are usually
^ bluntly triangular without lobes, the more distinctive form of the ivy proper
^* being first developed when the plant has made some progress and found for
itself a congenial object of attachment. As we survey the scene, and observe
that every tree has its stem wreathed with the ivy, and some trees are heavily
garlanded above with the branching growth that produces flowers and fruit, it
will be noted that, although little ivy plants stud the ground, they do not
anywhere form a carpet on the common surface, and indeed make no progress
at all until they can obtain a hold to rise above it. In the garden we see $ ?
the plant winding on the flat ground as a trailer ; in the woods it is quite an
exceptional occurrence, it may indeed be termed an accident for it to assume

grassy herbage amidst which they begin life ; they are suffocated through in-
ability to rise above the common crowd in the midst of which they were born.
The seeds that fall at the foot of a tree, a stone, or a tower, have no better
conditions for germinating than those that fall amongst rough herbage, but the
plants that spring from them are enabled from the first to employ their means ^
of attachment and begin that aspiring life which renders the ivy one of the )
grandest adornments of the landscape in which it happens to constitute a \t)
distinguishing feature. "When we meet with sheets of ivy unattached to
trees or walls or other perpendicular surfaces, it will generally be found that
they are on sloping ground, and it is not at all uncommon to find raised banks

on the outskirts of woods and in the vicinity of ruins as richly clothed with
the elegant evergreen tracery as the trees and walls on which the plant is
more advantageously displayed. The poet Keats was a keen observer of such
things, and in his matchless Endymion he gives our plant its proper place in
the " mighty forest" " upon the sides of Latmos."

" Paths there were many, *{

Winding through palmy fern, and rushes fenny, (

And ivy banks." 1

1 " Endymion," Book I.

tr

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PLANT.

To what height a thriving plant is capable of ascending no man knows ;
for the loftiest sweep of rock, the tallest tree or tower, will be surmounted by
it in time if no accident occurs to stop its growth midway. Soon after

emerging from its shell as a little plant with lobeless leaves, it begins to put
forth leaves that are distinctly lobed, and then the character of the plant is
in great part determined. In one district it will be found that the ivies are,
for the most part, uniformly three-lobed ; in another they are five-lobed ; in
another they will vary to such an extent that twenty or more distinct varieties
may be found in a single acre of woodland, or on one mass of rock or ruin.
Nor is it always needful to explore a considerable tract of ground to make
acquaintance with its distinctive variations, for all the forms it assumes in
one great tract of woodland may be sometimes represented by a single plant.
It conducts one some distance towards the romance of botany to find ivy leaves
of a dozen distinct forms, some of them remarkable for beauty or oddity, and
others of the most commonplace type, all growing on the same stem, and
suggesting to the observer that this plant is the Proteus of the vegetable
kingdom. Nevertheless, with all this variableness, it will be found that certain
typical characters prevail, and that every district possessing definite geological

of ivy,

or a

^roup

that

and aerial characters has its own particular form
tends more or less to a local type.

It is the nature of the plant to climb, and so far as we know to climb for ever.
But having reached the summit of its supporting fabric, its nature is changed. It
now ceases to produce holding-claws, and throws out tree-like branches instead of
slender clinging stems. The leaves on the branching stems are not lobed, and
they are invariably more or less ovate ; and, however various, tend invariably to an
ovate form, and are harder, smoother, and more glossy, than those on the climbing
stems. What occasions this change ? The cause undoubtedly is the loss of sup-
port. The plant cannot advance any higher, and its branches assume a horizontal
position, and the check thus occasioned in the flow of the sap is the secret of the
change in the aspects it presents. A careful examination of a plant which has
" crowned the edifice" will disclose several intermediate grades of form in the
leaves between those that are boldly lobed on the vertical surface, and those that
are without lobes above it. These intermediate leaves clothe stems that are in a
transitional state, and they strikingly illustrate the explanation offered above that
the check in the flow of the sap resulting from the change of attitude of the branch
is the cause of the change in the form of the leaves. Now, let us suppose that on
the top of a tower clothed with the tree-like growth of ivy we raise a pinnacle.

THE IVY.

I

The tree-like branches that happen to lean against it will put forth climbing shoots
with lobed leaves, and these will climb to the summit, and then, arrested in their
upward career through lack of support, will assume the arborescent form in pre-
cisely the same manner as those on the original summit out of which they sprang.
By striking cuttings of -the climbing stems, the intermediate stems, and the arbo-
rescent stems, we may secure three distinct forms of ivy from one plant, and these
forms will keep their characters if some amount of skill is bestowed in cultivating
them.

It is not alone in the difference of leafage that the vertical and the horizontal
growths differ. The first never produces fruit, the second always does.1 Hence
« we may properly distinguish them as climbing forms and fruiting forms of the
y same plant. Instead of lengthening out indefinitely, the fruiting form produces
shoots of a few inches or a foot or so in length, each shoot terminating in a cluster
or umbel of flower buds, which expand into pretty green flowers in September and
October, and soon after are succeeded by small spherical fruit, which ripens during
the winter, and acquires a black or dark brown colour. In the South of Europe a
variety which produces berries of a dull orange hue, the " golden, "or " yellow-
berried " ivy, is common, and as its leafage is of a lighter green than our black-
berried ivy, it contributes in a remarkable degree to the gorgeous colouring of
many noble scenes that have roused the emulation of poets and painters to ensure
for them the fame they deserve. In that interesting work, " The Flora of the
Colosseum of Rome," by Dr. Deakin, the ivy is of course one of the 420 plants
found by the botanist growing on the ruins of that magnificent memento of Rome's
former pride. The learned author of that work says the ivy covers with pendulous
clusters of golden-coloured berries the remains of a large tomb in a vineyard on
the right hand of the Appian road, going towards Cecilia Metella's tomb, which is
also clothed in some parts with ivy, and is spoken of in " Childe Harold" as the
" stern round tower of other days," in the stanza quoted in the last chapter.

Two interesting questions now present themselves for our consideration. To
begin with the holding-claws — what are they? Sir J. E. Smith says the stem,
when climbing, is " flattened, and attached by dense tufted fibres, which serve for
support, not nourishment."2 Dr. Deakin says : " The root-like processes . . .
are variously formed, but all equally perfect in accomplishing the purpose for which

1 Some varieties are believed to be sterile, and this should qualify the expression,
however, a question if the belief is well founded; in the author's opinion it is not.

2 " English Flora," 1824, I. p. 335.

It is,

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PLANT.

21

they were made, namely, the support of the climbing branches, but not as means
of absorbing sustenance for the maintenance of its vitality." l Dr. Hooker describes
the plant as "climbing by adhesive rootlets," and thereby hits the truth more
nearly than the authors above quoted, or a score more that might be quoted. For
a first essay to determine the point the plant must be frequently examined during
the early part of the summer, when the " root-like processes " will be found to be
soft, whitish, almost pellucid, variable in size, but always suggestive of a pointed
tooth. Very gently do they thrust their way into crevices of bark, or brick, or
stone, and there take firm hold, and soon after shrink into tough hair-like fibres,
severally weak, but collectively strong, and holding the flattened stem so close and
firm to its support that the ivy is always as safe as the wall itself. If, while the
claws are tender and pellucid, we cut a portion of the stem, and lay it on a surface
of damp moss in a shady place, it will 'be found that the claws begin immediately
to lengthen into true roots, and ramify through the moss in search of nutriment ;
and, if left alone, will soon sustain the cutting as an independent plant. What
shall we say of this experiment, but that it proves the "tufted fibres" to be
(in the language of the "Vestiges") true roots that have been arrested in the
process of development.

It is impossible to proceed far in the observation of ivies without making
the discovery that it is as often an aerial as a terrestrial plant. It can live
and thrive without roots in the earth ; and wherever there is a grand old wall
or ruin much clothed with ivy, it will be quite an easy matter to find detached
pieces, sometimes vast sheets, sometimes mere single sprays that have been
cut off by accident or the hand of man from connection with the earth, and
that evidently prosper in their isolated condition. One of the most interesting
examples of this aerial growth may be seen at Hadleigh Castle, near Southend,
in Essex. On the old walls of Conway there are hundreds of detached ivies ;
and to avoid waste of space in a mere enumeration it may be said that who-
ever will seek for true aerial growths will very soon find them. But how is it to
be accounted for, that if we find an ivy on a wall or tower, and sever the stem
near the ground so as to cut off all supplies of nourishment from that below,
the ivy still lives ? The answer is, that the claws are true roots, which are usually
arrested in development, but are fully developed when circumstances are favour-
able, and penetrate far into the masonry that supports the plant to provide for
it, whenever an accident shall result in isolation.

1 " Florigraphia Britannica," I. p. 331.

THE IVY.

The profusion of the climbing stems results in their overlying and crossing
one another to an extent which produces, in time, a curious resemblance to

a network of rough cordage. The
closeness with which they cling to
the wall or tree, owing to the con-
traction of the claws after they have
taken hold, compresses those which
happen to lie undermost where the
outer stems cross them, and in many
instances the branches are by this
means closely grafted together, or are
so completely joined by their respec-
tive rough surfaces as to be in a
condition resembling veritable grafts,
so that no ordinary force, as that of
the human hands for example, is suf-
ficient to separate them. Natural
grafts are occasionally met with in
trees of large growth, such as oaks,
elms, beeches, sycamores, and limes,
but they are exceptional occurrences.
On the other hand, the ivy may be
said to graft its limbs together as a
pastime, for we shall never fail to
find natural grafts where a wall or
tree has been clothed for some
years.

The second question arises out of the first. Is the ivy a parasite ? The
poets declare it to be such ; the botanists say it is not. In Johnson's Dic-
tionary it is described as " a parasitick plant, sending forth roots or fibres
from its branches by which it is fastened to other trees, walls, or plants
which are near it, and from thence it receives a great share of its nourish-
ment." l To the belief in its parasitic nature we are indebted for many fine
images and comparisons in the poets. In "The Tempest," Prospero describes

Nature-grafted ivy stems.

u

*

(

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PLANT.

to his daughter Miranda the conduct of his ''perfidious" brother, the usurping
Duke of Milan, as

" Having both the key

Of officer and office, set all hearts i' the state

To what tune pleased his ear ; that now he was

The ivy, which had hid my princely trunk,

And suck'd my verdure out on't." 1

Again, in the " Comedy of Errors," Adriana believes that she is reproaching
her husband, Antipholus of Ephesus, when she is really confronting his twin
brother, Antipholus of Syracuse, and vainly endeavouring to rouse in him a
response to her own affection : —

" Come, I will fasten on this sleeve of thine ;
Thou art an elm, my husband, I, a vine ;
Whose weakness, married to thy stronger state,
Makes me with thy strength to communicate :
If aught possess thee from me, it is dross,
Usurping ivy, briar, or idle moss :
Who, all for want of pruning, with intrusion
Infect thy sap, and live on thy confusion."2

In the few extracts from botanical works given above to set forth the
opinions of botanists on the nature of the holding fibres, it is distinctly
asserted that these do not obtain nourishment, and that is equivalent to
saying that the ivy is not a parasite, though in very few books of authority
shall we find an unequivocal declaration on the subject. The matter is not dis-
posed of, however, by the assertion that the claws become roots, or that an
isolated sheet of ivy will continue to thrive for years on an old bastion, or a
wall of great thickness. Does the ivy subsist on living trees when isolated ?
That is the question. Now it may be safely affirmed that it does live for
some time, say a year or two ; for we may often find in the woods examples
of isolated ivies in a thriving state, and may fairly judge by the appearance
of the stem where it has been severed, that some considerable time has elapsed
since the deed was done. Bat a sufficiently striking example has never come
under our observation ; such as we have seen were small, and might have
had unseen connections with the earth ; we have never met with a grand
poll of ivy clustering at the summit of a living tree and indubitably cut

•9

V

%

&

THE IVY.

off from the assistance of its proper roots and compelled to derive its sus-
tenance from the bark of the tree alone. It cannot, therefore, at present
be affirmed that the plant is. parasitical, although we incline to the belief
that it is.

Two more questions, as important as they are interesting, now present
themselves. Does the ivy injure the edifice to which it is attached ? It all
depends. As a rule it tends to injury, but that tendency is often more than
balanced by its protecting power. The insinuation of its stem- roots will, in
time, loosen the joints of brickwork or masonry, but this operation proceeds
so slowly as to be practically unimportant. A frail structure will of necessity
suffer sooner than a stout one ; and, as we find the ivy holding hard to walls
which it has adorned for a thousand years or more, it must not be credited with
any terribly destructive power. On the other hand, it protects the wall to which
it clings by keeping it dry. A wall originally damp becomes drier when it is
clothed with ivy, for the leaves shoot off the rain, and the stem-roots suck the
moisture from the fabric to feed the plant.

In a paper by the present writer on the habits of the Ivy, published in the
first volume of the " Floral World,"1 an account was given of a systematic
inquiry into the effects of ivy on the walls of churches. Many persons competent
to afford evidence on the subject — clergymen, churchwardens, parish clerks, and
others — were interrogated, and their collective evidence amounted to this, that
instances of injury to churches by the attachment of ivy might be found, but, upon
the whole, the harm done was trifling, and the shelter afforded was eminently
beneficial, and mare than compensated, for in some cases exposed walls would
decay faster through the action of the weather than they would if sheltered and
bitten by ivy. A rural dean, giving evidence in this case, said: — " Nothing so
effectually keeps a building dry as ivy ; for, after the heaviest rain, the wall to
which it adheres will be found quite dry, the leaves acting as a weather-board,
or vertical tiling, to throw every drop of rain away from it. Its exuberant and
web-like roots bind everything together with which they come in contact with such
a firm and intricate lace- work, that not a single stone can be removed from its
position without first tearing away its protecting safeguard." This holding of the
old fabric together may be of further importance in the case of venerable old
churches on which restorers have cast their Vandalic and Iconoclastic eyes ;

f

4

" Floral World," 1858, p. 36.

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PLANT.

perhaps the Dean had such in view when he laid stress on the conservative
principles of his favourite evergreen. In proof of his statements, he refers to
ruins of castles and abbeys ; " for while in those parts of the structure that have
not had the advantage of this protection all has gone to utter decay, where the ivy
has thrown its preserving mantle everything is comparatively perfect and fresh,
and oftentimes the very angles of old sculptured stones are found to be almost
as sharp and entire as when they first came from the mason's yard " ! This is
fortunate ; for what should we do without ivy in the regions of the picturesque ?
How it marries the youth and freshness of the world to things old and crumbling
to dust ; how it brings the past and the present into complete unity, and shows
us how " on the faltering footsteps of decay youth presses"; and in its riotous
luxuriance vindicates the triumphs of nature over the art of man. And when it
reaches the topmost tower of the ancient castle or the hallowed shrine, and throws
out its huge bosses of shining leaves and flowers like a canopy to the summit,
" the fowls of the air lodge in the branches " of it, and a thousand happy songsters
sing the merry song of the " Ivy green."

In the case of a dwelling-house, for which our plant is one of the noblest
adornments, the screening off of rain is not the only benefit conferred, for
walls exposed to the north and east winds are warmer when clothed than they
would be naked, and the bonny inhabitant without increases the comfort of the
inhabitants within.

The next question concerns the welfare of the trees to which it attaches itself.
Does it injure them ? Without a doubt it does. The clasping stems check the
circulation of the sap in the rind of the tree ; the ample leafage, into which the
climber develops as it ascends, robs its supporter of light and air, and at last a
destructive warfare ensues, in which the '* usurping ivy " invariably becomes the
conqueror, and brings its stalwart friend with dishonour to the ground. Shall we
say " dishonour " of a mighty oak or elm that has succumbed at a moment when
it has acquired a magnificent vesture of evergreen herbage of the richest colour, in
which the honey-bees sing aloud on bright October days, and the painter passing
by is arrested by the majesty of its outlines and the depth of its shadows, and
must needs make a sketch of the picturesque object ere he can pursue his way ?
It seems that the word is appropriate, for it is a case of stifling, and there can at
least be no honour in yielding to an embrace that tends to ruin from the first gentle
pressure of the beautiful destroyer.

Bishop Mant has summed up many of the characteristics of the plant, this
one more especially, in a passage which it will be appropriate to reproduce : —

26

THE IVY,

" Its verdure trails the Ivy shoot
Along the ground from root to root ;
Or climbing high, with "'random maze,
O'er elm, and ash, and alder strays ;
And round each trunk a network weaves
Fantastic, and each bough with leaves
Of countless shapes entwines, and studs
With pale green blooms and half- form' d buds.
The Ivy, of our native flowers
That now among the latest pours
Its pale green bloom, and ripes its seed
Of black and shining balls to feed,
Impervious to the winter's frost,

The little birds' afflicted host ;

The Ivy, fairest plant to seize,

And promptest, on the neighbouring trees,

O'er bole and branch, with leaves that shine

All glossy bright, tenacious twine,

And the else naked woodland scene

Clothe with a raiment freeh and green.

Fair is that Ivy twine to see !

But as ye love the goodly tree,

0 rend away the clasping wreath, — •

'Twill pay the kind support with death.

Ah, that beneath such semblance fair

Should lurk conceal'd such deadly snare !"

The ivy has a vast geographical range ; it grows in sun and shade, and in
every kind of soil. Nevertheless, it has its peculiarities, or, as we might say, its
" likes and dislikes." In the heavy clay-lands of the London basin it is scarce as a
wild plant, though plentiful as a subject of cultivation. On the limestones of
Derbyshire and North Wales, and, indeed, almost everywhere on the older lime-
stone and sandstone formations, it abounds. In the woods it is usually of a deep
green hue, and rarely variegated ; but when it has rioted for years on castle walls
it breaks into splendid colours, presenting sheets of the richest golden leafage, or
delicate tones of grey, or dottings of snow white upon a general surface of grass
green. It is a limestone plant and a woodland plant, but given to vagrancy, and
thriving under the most diverse range of circumstances. Euripedes frequently
alludes to it as a sylvan plant, as in " The Virgin Dames " —

" The darksome, ivy-vested woods,

The woods that wave o'er Ida's brow,
Down whose steep sides the cool translucent floods
In mazy channels flow." *

In his enumeration of the vegetables that characterise various aspects and

soils, Yirgil says —

" The cold ground is difficult to know ;
Yet this the plants, that prosper there, will show —
Black ivy, pitch trees, and the baleful yew." 2

It is, however, far less characteristic of *' cold ground " than of a moist air,
and it is the atmospheric humidity much more than any peculiar quality of the

1 Potter's translation, 1165—1168.

2 Dryden's translation, " Georgics," II. 34?.

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PLANT.

soil which attracts the ivy to rocks and bridges and woods. One of the most rich
and varied displays of ivies in these islands is to be found in the Vale of Conway
and its continuation through Bettws to the Conway Falls, or, to enlarge the
field, let us say the whole of the woodland country on the easternmost spurs of
Snowdonia. Another grand ivy garden is Matlock Dale, and its continuation,
Darley Dale, where, indeed, the plant varies but little in its characters, but
frequently attains to a rich and luxuriant growth on the faces of the tors and the
skirts of woodlands.

The attachment of the plant to buildings is a matter of equal interest to the
naturalist and the poet. The reason of its frequent occurrence on the mountain
limestone and kindred formations, is the reason also of its adherence to edifices
new and old, and its magnificent appearance when man's work has been crushed
beneath the heel of Time, and become "the Ivy's food at last." In all these cases it
is encouraged by its proximity to cretaceous or calcareous substances. Its tender
stem-roots pierce the substance of the rock, or the cement that holds bricks and
stones together, and the plant derives assistance from the object it adorns. The
majority of these root-stems shrink into tough holding fibres, but some of them
become veritable roots, striking deep into the substance of the fabric to help the
plant while it continues rooted in the earth, but ready to sustain it altogether
whenever any accident shall cut off its original source of sustainment. Hence the
difference in the growth of the plant when it quits the sylvan scene and becomes a
mural tapestry. In the woods it is usually of a deep green colour, often exqui-
sitely netted, and sometimes dusted with obscure tones of grey and yellow ; but it
never, or at least most rarely, acquires any decided variegation. But on the old
fortress and the ruined abbey it presents a variety of the most brilliant colours,
the combined effect of full exposure to light and unfailing supplies of calcareous
food. In either case, however, it is one of the most sportive plants in all the
world, cross fertilisation taking place without the aid of man's directing skill, and
producing results that the cultivator could not even hope for, though he might
devote the energies of a life in artificially fertilising and raising seedling ivies.

" By contemplating these forms

In the relations which they bear to man,

He shall discern, how, through the various means

Which silently they yield, are multiplied

The spiritual presences of absent things." x

1 Wordsworth's " Excursion," Book IV,

THE IVY.

In selecting trees for its support, our plant is as universal as in respect of
soil, and yet in the same manner partial and peculiar. Any kind of tree may be
clothed with ivy, and we do find it climbing up the red stem of the Scotch fir,
with facility equal to its tracery of lace-like leafage on the silvery bole of the
beech. But as it haunts woodlands and limestone countries chiefly, so it is partial
to deciduous trees, and usually avoids evergreens of all kinds, and conifers in par-
ticular. The resinous bark of the pine or cedar may be distasteful to its teeth,
but the heavy shade of these trees is sufficient to account for the absence of ivy
from them ; for, though the subdued light of the wood suits it well, the plant
cannot thrive in the darkness it would have to grope through in making its way
up the stem of a thrifty spruce or cedar. Its favourite trees are the oak and the
elm, and in the eastern counties it is a constant companion of the hedgerow oaks
and elms, displaying upon their rugged bark wreaths of glossy green or golden
leafage, for the delight of the observant pedestrian.

Shakspere has this partiality in mind, where, in the " Midsummer Night's
Dream," Titania makes sportive love to "sweet Bully Bottom" as he stretches
his corpulent frame in listless abandonment on the green sward, and the fairy

queen says : —

" Sleep thou, and I will wind thee in my arms.
Fairies begone, and be all Vays away.
So doth the woodbine and the sweet honeysuckle
Gently entwist ; the female ivy so
Enrings the barky fingers of the elm." 1

1 Act IV. s. 1. In Knight's "Pictorial Shakspere" (Comedies, I. 368) occurs the following
note : — " According to Stevens, ' the sweet honeysuckle ' is an explanation of what the poet
means by * the woodbine,' which name was sometimes applied to the ivy. ' The honeysuckle '
doth entwist — ' the female ivy ' enrings — ' the barky fingers of the elm.' Upon this interpreta-
tion the lines would thus be printed : —

" ' So doth the woodbine, the sweet honeysuckle,
Gently entwist — the female ivy so
Enrings — the barky fingers of the elm.' "

This is certainly very different from the usual Shakespearian construction. Nor is our poet
fond of expletives. If the word " elm" is the only plant entwisted and enringed, we have only
one image. But if the woodbine is not meant to be identical with the " honeysuckle," we have
two images, each distinct, and each beautiful. Gifford pointed out the true meaning of the
passage, in his note upon a parallel passage in Ben Jonson : —

" Behold

How the blue bindweed doth itself enfold

1

THE CHARACTERISTICS OF THE PLANT.

The closeness of the attachment and the apparent indissolubility of the union
give peculiar point to this elegant sarcasm.

The suggestion of an affectionate alliance,,, as if Vivian and Merlin were
counterparts of the ivy and the elm, occurred to Horace in the very same form as
to the latest of our own poets. His thirty-sixth ode concludes as follows : —

" Here let the Rose and Lily shed
Their short-liv'd bloom j let parsley spread
Its living verdure o'er the feast,
And crown with mingled sweets the guest.
In Damalis each amorous boy
Shall gaze with eyes that flow with joy,
While she, as curls the Ivy-plant,
Shall twine luxuriant round her new gallant." *

To conclude this chapter let us turn to Euripides, and observe how the most
tender and pathetic of the Greek bards'discovers in the intimate union of the ivy
and its supporting tree, an analogy with the endurance and constancy of the love
that makes perpetual youth in every human heart, that will be but true to its own
impulses. The passage occurs in " Hecuba," and is, without question, one of the
finest of its class in all the vast range of ancient and modern dramatic literature-
Hecuba, already weighed down by an accumulation of miseries, is now distressed
beyond relief of tears by the demand of Ulysses for her daughter, who is doomed
to be offered a sacrifice on the tomb of Achilles ; and at this demand she lets go
her last hold on life, and would fain add to the smoke of the funeral oblation : —

" Ulysses. The virgin's death sufficeth, and

We add not more. Would heaven hers might be spared !

With honeysuckle, and both these entwine
Themselves with bryony and jessamine."

" In many of our counties," says Gifford, " the woodbine is still the name for the great
convolvulus."

This sort of criticism is akin to that to which the Mosaic cosmogony has been subjected, and
which Mr. Goodwin shattered at a blow, by declaring that what Moses wrote Moses meant, and
there was an end of the matter. In like manner it may be said that when Shakspere speaks
of the ivy, he means the ivy, and not the honeysuckle, or convolvulus, or anything but ivy. The
object of commentators appears to be not seldom to make confusion worse confounded.

1 Francis's translation. The soul of the original is in the line —
" Lascivis hederis ambitiosior."

30

THE IVY.

Hecuba. It is of strong necessity that I

Die with my child.
Ulysses. What strong necessity ?

I know no mighty lord's commanding power.
Hecuba. I'll clasp her as the ivy clasps the oak.
Ulysses. Not so, if temperate prudence might prevail.
Hecuba. Never, 0 never will I quit my child." *

Fast he stealeth on, though he wears no wings,

And a staunch old heart has he.
How closely he twineth, how tight he clings,

To his friend the huge Oak Tree !
And slily he traileth along the ground,

And his leaves he gently waves,
As he joyously hugs and crawleth round

The rich mould of dead men's graves.

Creeping where grim death has been,
A rare old plant is the Ivy green.

Potter's translation, 368—376.

IV.— USES OF THE IVY.

; Now on some twisted ivy-net,
Now by some tinkling rivulet,
In mosses mixt with violet
Her cream-white mule his pastern set."

TENNYSON'S " LAUNCELOT AND GUINEVERE."

is most unfortunate for the purposes of this
work that there can be no long catalogue in-
cluded in it of useful purposes to which our
plant may be applied. Without question its
highest uses are those of adornment, for it
contributes but little to our material resources,
and it is in the region of romance or sentiment
that we must seek for the most important uses
of the ivy. Most appropriately may the well-
known lines with which Endymion opens be
applied to this familiar emblem of unchange-
ableness and immortality :

" A thing of beauty is a joy for ever ;
Its loveliness increases ; it will never
Pass into nothingness, but still will keep
A bower qui^t for us, and a sleep
Full of sweet dreams, and health, and quiet
breathing."

Those uses of the plant, however, which come within the range of the
romantic are not to be slighted. To the Ivy we are without doubt indebted for
the preservation of many a stately pile that would erst have become dust without
it. Thus it may be regarded as the vegetable keeper of historical records, for
although it may thrust rude hands amongst them, as when it sends its roots
deep into the wall of a tower or keep, it affords a protecting shield against
wind, and rain, and snow ; its matted felt of stems and its imbricated leaves

\

THE IVY.

constituting a truly waterproof protection, adding to the warmth and ensuring
the perfect dryness of the protected structure. Robert Nicoll must have had this
in mind when he wrote : —

" The ivy clings about the ruin'd walls

Of cell, and chapel, and refectory ;
An oak-tree's shadow, cloud-like, ever falls

Upon the spot where stood the altar high ; &f

The chambers all are open to the sky ; %[ *

A goat is feeding where the praying knelt ;

The daisy rears its ever open eye
Where the proud Abbot in his grandeur dwelt,
These signs of Time and Change the hardest heart might melt."

Enough has been said about the employment of the plant in ancient times, in
religious ceremonies, and the customs of conviviality. It may yet be added,
however, that although amongst the Greeks the use of the ivy was somewhat
restricted, the Romans adopted it as a universal emblem, for it was woven into
garlands on every occasion when such were used. As a rule it was associated
\ with occasions of rejoicing, and but rarely employed in funereal rites or for dressing
the couch or the grave of the dead. In later times it acquired a distinguishing
place in the celebrations of Christianity ; and in this day of ceremonial revivals in
the Church is largely used in the construction of wreaths for the altar, although,
according to tradition, its place is always without and not within the sacred edifice
$ or the hall of festivity. Stow tells us that, "against the feast of Christmas
every man's house, as also the parish churches, were decked with holme, ivy, and
* bayes, and whatsoever the season of the year afforded to be given. The conduits
]j f and standards in the streets were likewise garnished." An old Christmas
carol on the " Holly and the Ivy" definitely declares the place for each of
A these plants : —

'* Nay, my nay, hyt shal not be I wys,
Let holy hafe the mastry, as the maner ys ;
Holy stond in the hall, fayre to behold,
Ivy stond without the dore, she ys ful sore acold.
Nay, my nay.

Holy, and hys mery men, they dawnsyn and they syng,
Ivy and hur maydyns, they wepyn and they wryng.
Nay, my nay."1

1 " Harleian Manuscripts," 5336.

M=^=

t

Nor was it forgotten in the dressing of the person, or thought a mean
ornament for the embellishment of female beauty, although, indeed, an imitation
of the kind, now known as " artificial flowers," may have been more highly prized
than the reality. However, Ealeigh shall speak on the subject : —

" A gown made of the finest wool,
Which from our pretty lambs we'll pull j
A belt of straw and ivy buds,
With coral clasps and silver studs.
And if these pleasures may thee move,
Come live with me, and be my love."

In old times the plant had some repute in medicine, but is now of no repute
at all. Those who have observed how freely green ivy burns in a fire of garden
rubbish may reasonably expect that, by the evident presence in the plant of oily or
resinous substances, it may some day prove to be serviceable in the arts. Cato
saith that wine put into the ivy cup will soak through it, by reason of the
antipathy that is between them; this antipathy being, as he says, "very great
between wine and ivy, for that one who hath a surfeit by drinking wine will find
his speediest cure if he drink a draught of the same wine wherein a handful of ivy
leaves had been steeped." Many experiments have been made for the purpose
of determining its power to modify the intoxicating power of wine, but with no
definite result such as would indicate the existence in the plant of any substance,
like thein for example, which might act upon the nervous system to prevent or
delay intoxication. The leaves have a nauseous taste and stimulate the salivary
glands, and when a strong tea, made from them, is taken inwardly it acts as a
mild purgative. In olden times the leaves were applied to ulcers and used as
poultices, but they are now probably never used for these purposes at all. A
decoction of ivy leaves was in olden times esteemed as a sudorific, and an infusion
of the berries in vinegar was considered a fine antidote to agues, fevers, and dis-
orders of the digestive organs, and, above all, against "the plague," the bitterness
no doubt being the more useful than in these days of cleanliness and quinine can
be imagined. Curiously enough, a cup made of the wood of the ivy was con-
sidered capable of imparting to any liquor poured into it a power of averting any
disease; a prefiguring of the "bitter cup " made of quassia wood (?), which of late
years has become a shop article.

The only preparation of ivy known to chemists for useful purposes is hederic
acid, which is thus described in the English Cyclopedia : — " An acid, of uncertain
composition, extracted from ivy-berries. It crystallises in needles or thin plates,

J

I
I

a ,

I

I

^

^ which are colourless and inodorous, but possess the intensely bitter taste of the
ivy. It is insoluble in water and ether, but soluble in alcohol. In contact with
sulphuric acid it strikes a fine purple colour." l

In seasons of drought and scarcity of provender the plant has proved of great
value as cattle food ; for horses, cattle, deer, and sheep are partial to it ; the latter
especially so. This fact did not escape the notice of Shakspere, for when he
makes the shepherd in " Winter's Tale" complain of the hunters who have
broken in upon his flock, it is in these terms : —

" They have scared away two of my best sheep, which, I fear, the wolf will sooner find than
the master. If anywhere I have them, 'tis by the sea-side, browsing of ivy." 2

IV

I Idle as the syrphus is, and incapable of storing honey, it is one of the

gardener's best friends ; for its larva subsists on aphides, and especially such as
infest currant and gooseberry trees. Amongst the many other insects that
frequent the ivy-flowers, a few grand butterflies occur occasionally, such as the
Red Admiral, the Painted Lady, the Camberwell Beauty, and the Pearl -bordered
Fritillary. The berries which follow afford sustenance to thrushes, blackbirds,
fieldfares, wood-pigeons, and other birds, who, at the season when the ivy offers

y>
%

\l
(E

1 Arts and Sciences division, article Hederic Acid.

2 Act III. B. 3.

3 " Endymion," Book I.

(L

In an indirect manner, the ivy contributes considerably to our comfort ; for
its flowers are rich in honey, and the honey-bees haunt them in all the sunny
hours of autumn from the time they begin to expand. A bee-like fly, the Syrphus
ribesi, may usually be found in plenty on the flowers of the ivy, and is easily |JK
distinguished from the honey-bee by the wide spread of its wings and its com-
paratively idle movements — so unlike the busy confectioner that sings over his
work, and that Keats so happily characterised in one of his most charming >JL/
passages— A

" And as a willow keeps ^ I

A patient watch ovsr the stream that creeps

Windingly by it, so the quiet maid

Held her in peace : so that a whispering blade

Of grass, a wilful gnat, a bee bustling

Down in the bluebells, or a wren light rustling

Among sere leaves and twigs, might all be heard." 3

its store, can find but few other berries, those of the mountain ash, the bramble,
and the thorn being by that time utterly gone or nearly so. The plant that feeds
so many useful and entertaining creatures contributes in no small degree towards
the happiness of mankind. Nor must we forget that the owl, the best hunter of
mice and such small deer, prefers to nest in an ivy -tower for the warmth and
dryness and darkness, and perhaps also for proximity to the prey its attentions,
when hunger calls, are chiefly devoted to.

The garden uses of the ivy are but little understood. It is common, indeed,
to meet with grand banks and verges of Irish ivy in gardens, but it is extremely
rare for an amateur to take to the plant in earnest, and collect the varieties and
put them to the several uses they are adapted for. All the climbing sorts are suited
for the covering of walls, trellises, and arbours ; and it is an especial recom-
mendation of them that they grow more luxuriantly, and acquire finer colours, on
a damp wall facing north than in any other situation or aspect. They need but
little training on a rough surface ; for there they train themselves, and it is

scarcely needful to

" Direct the clasping ivy where to climb,"

as Milton prudently directs. Where a luxuriant growth is required, the green-
leaved varieties are, as a rule, \o be preferred, although a few of the variegated
varieties grow rapidly and soon produce a grand effect. The more delicate- habited
varieties with variegated leaves, snch as the "marginata" series, are best adapted
for dwarf walls of six to eight feet high, but these will in time cover a ten or
fifteen feet wall. Patientid vinces.

The partiality of the plant for a moist atmosphere and a subdued light renders
it peculiarly well adapted for glass cases, whether of an ornamental kind, adapted
to adorn an entrance-hall, or for a mere window screen to plant out an unpleasant
prospect in a town dwelling. There used to be a good example of this use of the
ivy in the windows of the house inhabited by the late Dr. Conquest, in Finsbury
Square, London. These windows were fitted with cases projecting outwards, and
forming a narrow glass box, with a trough at the bottom in which the ivies were
planted, and a few copper wires served for training them over the outermost sheet
of glass. The result was a cheerful, leafy screen, agreeable in appearance as seen
from without, but decidedly beautiful as seen from within against the light, every
leaf then showing its elegant veining, sharp and clear, upon a semi-transparent
ground of the richest green. For a large fern case, especially for a vase with a
tall glass lantern-like structure fitted to it, the plant is well adapted ; and many
\\lio have failed to grow ferns in cases (say through planting them in bad stuff,

f

36

TIIE IVY.

and dosing them too much with water), might advantageously give up fern -growing
and plant one or two ivies in their stead. About three times in the course of a

year will be often enough to water
them, if the case is kept always
closely shut; and a few copper
wires, deftly placed, will suffice
for training them to form a pretty
tracery : the soft lead wire, or
" horticultural wire," as it is called,
obtainable at any ironmonger's,
being the best material for tying
in the shoots, as required. The
author has a fine Ransome vase
with glass lantern (of the kind
figured at page 66 of " Rustic
Adornments "), filled with a rich
growth of ivy, which has occupied
its present position more than ten
years, and is still vigorous enough
and extremely beautiful. This case
occupies a comparatively dark corner
of the entrance-hall, and the ivy
suffers less through lack of light
than the ferns that keep it company.
The smaller form of Hedera helix,
in this work denominated Helix

minor, is the best for the purpose ; but any of the small green-leaved kinds are
appropriate.

Mary Howitt, in her " Art- Student in Munich," mentions that, from the
palace to the cottage, there is scarcely a room to be found which does not possess
its ivy tree, and hardly a window to be seen in the street which is not rendered a
bower by the festoons of ivy. It trails around the bars of the window, makes a
verdant background to bouquets of flowers placed in vases or flower-pots, and
often wreaths its picturesque leaves around a small statue of the Madonna.

"A very pleasant little paper, I have often thought, might be written,
descriptive of the windows in a German street; and the mode in which the
cherished ivy was trained would play a conspicuous part in it. You may read

s

USES OF THE IVY. 37

much of the character of the inmates of the dwelling by the ivy. Sometimes its
leaves are dusty, and its growth is ungraceful, and its sprays untastefully trained ;
sometimes it grows in a gaudy flower-pot, or swings from the centre of a window
in a hideously-shaped Blumen-lamp — flower-lamp, as it is called — a kind of
swinging -vessel for plants, very much in vogue here ; but, as a rule, the ivy is
gracefully, nay, most poetically trained ; its Blumen-lamp, if it be planted in one,
is often of a graceful rustic character, perhaps of red terra-cotta, with delicately
moulded foliage of yellowish-white clay meandering over it.

" But it is not alone in windows that you see the ivy trained. Ivy often
forms a green and fresh screen across a room, being planted in boxes, and its sprays
trained over rustic framework. Ivy often casts its pleasant shadows over a piano,
so that the musician may sit before his instrument as within a little bower. Ivy
may be seen adorning the shrine which hangs upon the wall, or dropping its
sprays above the lady's work-table.

" The staircase in the house of a great painter here is a complete little bit of
fairy-land, thanks to his love of ivy, which festoons the balustrade of the polished
oak stairs, and strews forth its kindly leaves among the rarer beauties of palms
and myrtles, which rise grove-like upon the landings ! I know an apothecary's
shop which is rather like a bit of wild wood, from its growth of ivy, than a shop
of physic. I was told the other day of a studio here equally sylvan ; and I know
an old cobbler who could not mend his shoes without seeing his ivy-bush daily
before him as he works." J

In Paris the ivy is frequently grown in the same manner.

Another very important use for the ivy in the garden is that of furnishing,
during winter, the beds that have been occupied with flowers during the summer.
For this purpose the plants must be grown in pots and plunged where required for
the winter, and during the summer must be taken care of in the reserve garden.
As the green- leaved kinds thrive in smoky localities, they might be largely em-
ployed to dress town gardens, whether in the form of bold marginal lines, as on
Islington Green and the (Victoria) Thames Embankment in London, or as a
carpeting for open spaces instead of grass, or to cover knolls, or to be trained over
posts of wood or stone as independent shrubs, or to coax along divisional fences
and chains, wreath-like, as might be advisable in cathedral closes and churchyards
generally. There are four plants at our command for clothing the ground beneath
large trees — the holly, the privet, the periwinkle, and the ivy. Not the least

1 Anne Pratt's " Flowering Plants of Great Britain," II. p. 60.

THE IVY.

valuable is the last in the list ; for, once rooted, it may be allowed to run, and
wherever it runs it will carry a cheerful face, and give its glossy sober leafage in
exchange for blank earth suggestive of noisome barrenness. It must be repeated
that it is one of the best of graveyard plants, and most appropriate for a clothing
of the mounds which mark the resting-places of the dead. If the reader will call
to mind how, in our burial-places, about nine-tenths of the graves are left for rank
grasses and sow-thistles and docks to compete for the mastery, the suggestion of
a cheap and appropriate garniture, needing but little care, and in itself an emblem
of the consoling thought that our religion offers in compensation for the loss of
those "we love, "will appear otherwise than superfluous or unseemly. The Laureate
found satisfaction in reflecting that from the heart of his friend might spring u the
violet of his native land"; others may be gratified by seeing the sacred dust
of those who were dear to them in life decently covered with "the garland of
eternity." When Jenny Lind heard of the death of her friend, the late Bishop
of Norwich, she sent, according to the custom of her country, a chaplet of ivy to
be placed on his grave, as " her tears." It was an elegant and appropriate tribute
of affection. The Greeks and Romans rarely planted ivy on graves, for they held
it in reverence chiefly as the associative of festivity ; but Saturn and Bacchus are
no more, the great god Pan has no " humble psean," and, except in name as a
badge for botanists, Cybele herself has finished her symbolical career.

In decorative art the ivy has never enjoyed the importance it appears entitled
to by its singularly beautiful outlines, its diversity of characters, its natural
association with the stems of trees, that indicate its appropriateness for the
embellishment of architectural columns, and, though last not least, its renown as
an emblem of unchangeableness and duration. The vine, palm, acanthus, honey-
suckle, oak, rose, water-lily, pomegranate, and trefoil, have, so it appears to the
writer, been far more freely and tastefully employed, some of them in ancient, and
all of them in modern times, than this most accommodating of all vegetables, both
for realistic and conventional designs. There cannot be a doubt that it is adapted
to furnish an almost exhaustless variety of elegant forms for the purposes of the
sculptor, the worker in metals, and the designer of the humbler kinds of domestic
ornaments. We may look for ivies on friezes, mouldings, bosses, and fonts ; and
for suggestions of their forms in mullions and capitals : but rarely shall we find
them. The Greeks evidently thought they had done enough for the plant by
assigning it to Bacchus, but in the somewhat stern but always beautiful realism
of the early English Gothic, it occurs frequently in decorative details, and most
appropriately accompanies the material expression of the Christian idea of our

USES OF THE IVY.

spiritual and immortal life. In the more enriched examples of Norman archi-
tecture, the plant appears occasionally, and a very good example of its suitability
to enrich a capital may be seen in Oxford Cathedral. The commonest expression
of the ivy is essentially architectural. We see it wreathing the grey bole of a
mighty tree, and it seems proper to transfer this proposal of nature to the realms
of art, and carry the ivy-wreath around the columns in the nave, the plinth of the
font, and the screen of the chantry. The conventional ivy is usually a burlesque ,
not a finely-wrought fancy founded on fact like the honeysuckle of the Greek,
or the rose or acorn of the Gothic.

Whole ages have fled and their works decayed,

And nations have scattered been ;
But the stout old Ivy shall never fade,

From its hale and hearty green.
The brave old plant in its lonely days,

Shall fatten upon the past :
For the stateliest building man can raise,

Is the Ivy's food at last.

Creeping on, where time has been,
A rare old plant is the Ivy green.

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V.— THE CULTIVATION OF THE IVY.

" Here are cool mosses deep,
And thro' the moss the ivies creep,
And in the stream the long-leaved flowers weep,
And from the craggy ledge the poppy hangs in sleep."

TENNYSON'S " LOTOS-EATEHS."

BRIEF statement of the principal require-
ments of the plant, when subjected to
cultivation, will be sufficient under this
head. The ivy will thrive in any soil,
rich or poor, in which the ordinary plants
of the field and garden are found to attain
to an average condition of development.
For all the ordinary purposes of the culti-
vator, good garden ground is sufficient for
ivies planted out ; and a mixture of strong
loam, mellow manure, leaf mould, and sand,
such as would be prepared for fuchsias,
will answer admirably for ivies grown in
pots. The large-leaved, rampant -growing
kinds will make rapid progress in a rich
moist soil ; but the variegated kinds must
always be grown in a comparatively poor
soil, for any excess of vigour induced by high feeding will develop the green
portions of the leaf in so great a degree as to considerably lessen the richness
of the variegation. All the ivies thrive in peat soils; but there cannot be a
question that, if fine examples of the variegated sorts are required, peat is to
be avoided, and a mixture should be prepared consisting of turfy loam of a
light texture with a considerable admixture of old mortar or plaster broken
small, with siftings of broken brick and other such debris. In any and every
case they must be treated as hardy plants, and have the fullest exposure to

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THE CULTIVATION OF THE IVY.

the weather. Hence, if pot specimens are grown for decorating the con-
servatories during the winter, they must be allowed to make all their growth in
the open air in a partially- shaded spot, and be taken into the house in autumn
when the new wood is acquiring ripeness and the leaves are well coloured.
Differences of aspect produce differences of colour, and the richest tones of red and
bronze are best brought out by exposure to the north in a damp atmosphere. The
lovely carmine bars and blotches on some of the silvery-leaved varieties, and the
deep tints of chocolate, and purple, and bronze, that overspread many of the green-
leaved kinds in autumn, are invariably richer when the plants are fully exposed
than if in any material degree sheltered or shaded. But as shelter and shade
promote free growth and the development of brilliant tints of green, those who
would enjoy all possible variations of character of which the varieties are capable
must submit them to a diversity of conditions and aspects.

IVY ON WALLS. — The best ivies for walls are the large-leaved, fast-growing
kinds, such as Grandifolia, Viridis, Lucida, Lobata major, and the very distinct
and noble Coriacea. The common English, H. helix, in its ordinary form is very
beautiful when it has extended itself over a large surface, as it bites close, and
never fails to train its branches neatly. All the variegated ivies not of arborescent
character make beautiful screens for dwarf walls ; and are so effective that it is a
matter of surprise they are so seldom used in this way, their cheerful aspect
during winter being one of their greatest recommendations. If it be desired to
cover a large extent of wall quickly with fast-growing green-leaved ivies, plants
of two or three years old should be procured in pots. The soil of the border
should be deeply stirred and liberally manured. The plants should be turned out
of their pots in the middle of April, be planted firm, nailed in regularly, and be
freely watered from the time of planting till the end of July, an engine or syringe
being used to sprinkle the whole of the leafage frequently. This treatment will
assist the plant in " taking hold" of the new soil and situation, and the next
season it will grow vigorously without any other aid than occasionally nailing or
tying in a shoot that refuses to attach itself. Generally speaking, a little care the
first season is all that is needful. Any who desire to make a display of skill in
cultivating ivy may vary the process slightly as follows: — Plant in rich soil in
April, train in all the growth you can get, not with any particular regard to
appearances, but simply to keep all the shoots upright, even if several of them
cross each other. In the following April cut all the growth clean away to the
ground line, and the plants will immediately throw up stout shoots. Select of
these four or five to train out in the form of a fan ; rub away all the remaining

^L

shoots. Never allow any of the shoots to hang away from the wall, as this checks
^ their growth, and tends to throw them into a fruiting condition. The next season
cut back all the trained shoots about a third of their length, and in the following
S^ season they will quite fill up the spaces between them with their side-growths, and
make a vigorous upward growth from the top buds left at the former pruning.
#f From this time forward cut back all the growth to a regular line with the help of
^- a straight-edge, and remove all superfluous surface growth, so as to retain on the
wall only one layer of stems. Our common English ivy is unsurpassed for beauty
_^ when treated in this way, and one plant is enough for a breadth of twenty feet of
^ ' wall, which may thus be kept covered with a felt of vegetation consisting of close-
embracing stems and elegantly-veined leaves. It has been sufficiently explained
that, when the plant can no longer ascend, it forms fruiting instead of climbing
stems. This peculiarity of its habit renders it essential to keep ivy closely trained 6
so long as it is required to run ; for, if the growth of this year is allowed to
fall away from its support, or is torn from the wall by wind, the next season
it will begin to form flowering shoots and a bushy head. Sometimes the growth
of years is torn from walls by the immense weight of the flowering bosses
at the summit; but this destruction of a noble object is easily prevented by
means of a rough frame of woodwork fixed under the projecting growth parallel ft
to the top of the wall, to lessen the strain and the rocking of the mass during /
high winds.

STANDARD IVIES. — The vigorous habited green-leaved kinds make fine
standards for the lawn or terrace garden. Cuttings should be struck in pots
in July or August, and kept in a frame or pit all the winter. In April select
only those that have plump straight leaders, and plant them out in soil con-
sisting of at least one-half rotten manure, and the other half good loam, well
broken up to a depth of two feet. Keep them carefully trained to upright
stakes all the season, and give them abundance of water until the end of July,
and pinch in all side- shoots to two or three leaves from the base. The next
April cut them back to the height of the intended standards ; allow all side-
growths to push, but continually pinch the side-shoots in, to prevent any
of them acquiring a preponderance. At the same time train out the shoots of
the head their full length, to keep the vigour of the tree in the head. Cut /
back again the next April to within two or three buds of the base all the * «
^^ side-shoots and shoots of the head. At the end of five years they will be .
( * handsome trees, and may be planted where they are to remain for ornament. •£
After that time the side-shoots may be removed from the stem a few at a ^*

i

THE IVY.

time, beginning at the bottom, so as to form clean stems, and the heads may
be trained to any shape, or left to form flowering branches.

TREE IVIES. — The fruiting or arborescent ivies are admirably adapted for
the formation of compact bushes in the shrubbery, and they may be grown in pots
to plunge in flower-beds during winter, or to decorate the conservatory. It
will be observed that whatever names these varieties bear, and to whatever

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THE CULTIVATION OF THE IVY.

types they may be related, they have these invariable characteristics — that the
growth is forked, twiggy, and tends to form close symmetrical rounded heads ;
that the leaves are either wholly entire or very slightly lobed ; and that there
is a disposition to the formation of flowers and fruits abundantly. The quickest
way to produce fine specimens
is to graft in March shoots
cut from flowering wood of
the kind to be propagated on
strongly rooted stocks of Irish
ivy. The stocks should be
struck for the purpose the pre-
vious April or May, and be
kept in pots, so that when the
grafts are put on they may be
housed and kept shaded, to
encourage a quick union. But
flowering wood will readily
strike if the cuttings are made
early in the season. Take off
at the end of June a number
of shoots on which the leaves
are all entire, prepare them in
the usual way to form cuttings
four to six inches long, and pot
them singly in 54 or 60 sized
pots ; place them in a pit for
about eight days, and keep them
shaded and sprinkled occasion-
ally ; then put them on a gentle
bottom-heat, until the pots are

full of roots ; shift to 48 or

Natural growth of the arborescent Irish ivy.

32 size, using a fourth part rotten manure in the compost ; place them on a bed
of fermenting material out of doors, and there let them remain until the end of
September, when they must be removed to a pit or other place of shelter sufficient
just to protect them from severe frost. In March these will be in fine condition
for grafting, and will require no further potting for another year. The after
management consists in providing them with sufficient pot room, watering as

46

required, pinching back
any shoots that grow too
fast for the .formation
of symmetrical heads of
whatever shape may be
required.

UMBRELLAS AND
SCREENS. — These are
easily formed, and the
fast growing kinds should
be alone employed for
the purpose. Pot young
plants liberally, and set
them growing ; train out
on wire, and when the
outline of the design is
covered, pinch in all side-
shoots, so as to form the
head into a dense mass
of Terdure. Do not en-
tirely remove the side-
shoots from the stem
until a good head has
been obtained, as they
help to swell the stem,
but keep them pinched
back, and when they may
be dispensed with remove
a few at a time, com-
mencing at. the bottom.

These are useful at fetes,
and to decorate halls and
entrances, and may be
adapted to fit into re-
cesses and form dividing
screens between apart-
ments, by growing them
in troughs fitted with
wire work. The troughs
should never be larger
than can be carried by
two strong men, unless
it is certain that they
will be employed on the
same level at all times, in
which case they may be
mounted on low wheels.
To provide ornamental
covers for them is a com-
paratively simple matter,
light wirework or painted
basketwork being best
adapted for the purpose.
This mode of employing
the ivy was recommended
in the first edition of
" Rustic Adornments for
Houses of Taste," pub-
lished in 1856.

PYRAMIDS. — The

Skeleton plant of British ivy, to show the mode of training to form an umbrella.

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easiest of all the forms in which to train potted
ivies is that of the pyramid. Train the young
plants upright and orderly two seasons, then
shift them into 8 or 10 inch pots, using a firm
loamy soil, and a liberal proportion of manure
in the case of the green-leaved kinds. Insert a
few straight stakes, three or four feet long, and
to these train the leaders upright, and take the
side-shoots round and round, which will both aid
in furnishing the stakes, and at the same time
check their growth. In the autumn, when they
have done growing, draw the stakes together at
the summit, and tie them firm. Free growth
should be promoted until the plants have attained
a sufficient size to produce the effect required of
them, and thenceforward they may be kept in the
same pots three or four years without any change
of soil. Should they, however, show, by lack
of vigour, that the soil in the pots is exhausted,
they should be carefully turned out of the pots
in March or April, and a great part of the old
soil be removed from their roots, and then be
repotted into the same pots with fresh substantial
soil, which must be rammed in as the work pro-
ceeds. It will be well, of course, to scrub the
pots inside and out before replacing the plants
in them. During the summer these pyramids
should be plunged in tan or cocoa-nut fibre refuse
as deep as the rims of the pots, and have water
regularly. They afford invaluable materials for
the decoration of entrance-halls, corridors, and
flower-beds in winter, and ought to be employed
in hundreds and thousands of places where at
present they are utterly unknown.

BUSHES may be formed of both [the arbores-
cent and the climbing kinds. The first will require
no training ; the second must be trained with care.

Skeleton plant of Hedera coriacea, to show
the mode of training to form a pyramid.

Skeleton plant of Hcdera grandiflora arbures^ens, to show the
mode of training to form a round bush.

<5

Skeleton plant of Hedera helix, to show the mode of training
to Ibim a round bush.

The figure of the yellow-berried
ivy, at page 44, represents the
kind of bushes which have been
employed at Stoke Newington for
both outdoor and conservatory
decoration. These compact plants,
with brilliant grass-green leaves,
and a profusion of orange-co-
loured berries, present a most
beautiful appearance in the depth
of winter ; and if their roots are
sufficiently protected, the severest
frost does not harm them in the
least. To produce fine specimens
of this kind is purely a question
of time. They should never be
pruned at all unless there are
strong shoots pushing beyond the
general contour of the plant ; in
which case let them grow until
the end of July, and then shorten
them, and turn the primings to
account as cuttings. To make
bushes of the climbing sorts, trel-
lises must be inserted in the
pots, and the growth be regularly
trained to them. The skeleton
figures are intended to show the
manner in which the shoots must
be trained out : the trellises may
be flat or spherical.

PROPAGATION. — Incidentally
every detail in the multiplication
of ivies has been mentioned, and
therefore the several methods
resorted to may be explained in
very few words. By the time

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that ivy berries are quite ripe, the spring will be sufficiently advanced to allow
of the seeds being sown without any need of storing them previously. There is
no occasion to rot or bruise the berries : they may be sown thickly in beds of
sandy loam. Keep the ground clear of weeds, and as soon as the seedlings show
their characters remove any of distinct habit, and either plant them out where they
will have attention, or pot them. Those that remain will require to be planted
out in nursery rows after they have made one year's growth in the seed-bed.
Among the plants selected for special attention, some will prove to be distinct
varieties, the true characters of which will not be fully determinable till they are
quite three years old. Variegated ivies are seldom obtained from the seed-bed ;
they are usually sports produced on old specimens of wall ivies. Chalk and lime
are favourable to the production of variegated sports.

We may often see on ruins and old bridges broad sheets of variegated ivy>
the result of a sportive growth become permanent. These may always be propa-
gated by removing some of the young growth in May or June, selecting those
which, have some proportion of green in the leaves, and placing the cuttings
under bell-glasses in any sandy or peaty soil. Many beautiful varieties might be
added to our collections, if local sports were secured and distributed, which now
exist only in single specimens, and many of those we possess might be improved
by watching for peculiar growths, and rendering these permanent by propagation.

There is another method of causing cuttings of ivy to root quickly ; it is
founded upon the peculiar habit of the plant in attaching itself to rough surfaces,
such as walls, the bark of trees, &c. If the growth of a new shoot be observed in
spring, it will be seen that on the side next the wall it throws out a number of
small, fleshy, tender claws. These are in every respect identical with roots, and
only fail to become roots through lack of moisture in the substance to which they
are first applied. Take off a young shoot when about four inches long, remove
one or two of the lowest leaves, and plant it so that the delicate white rootlets at
the base are uninjured, and it will scarcely receive a check, for those rootlets will
push into the soil and form a plant at once without the otherwise needful prelimi-
nary of forming a callus. This is a quick method of propagating ivy, but it must
be done in May and June, and the shoots must be taken from a wall or other place
to which the plant is attached.

Another simple and expeditious method consists in making layers. To accom-
plish this with extra speed, peg out the shoots on a bed of cocoa-nut fibre refuse.
The free-growing kinds will throw out roots abundantly wherever they touch a
damp surface ; so there is really no limit to the possibilities of increase by this

THE IVY.

method; and even such delicate kinds as the marginatas and others that are
usually grafted, may be layered on cocoa-nut waste or sandy peat with the greatest
certainty.

The practice of grafting belongs to nursery practice, and to describe it would
be to depart from the plan and purpose of this work. Grafted plants of delicate
habited varieties grow faster at first than plants on their own roots, but the last
are to be preferred, for it is a quite common occurrence for the green- leaved stock
to throw up shoots and kill out the sort grafted on it, unless the mischief is dis-
covered in time, and the objectionable root shoots exterminated. As it may be an
object sometimes to multiply the variegated sorts rapidly and safely, the following
methods are recommended : —

Procure a lot of the sorts required, preferring plants with long shoots, no
matter how ugly and thin they may be. Make up a bed of light rich soil, the
lighter the better; if surfaced with chopped moss, or some such root-coaxing
stuff, it is an advantage. Plunge the pots in this bed all aslant, and peg the long
shoots down on the soil. Leave them alone for twelve months, then cut them up
and plant out or pot them as may be desirable, using to close in next the roots
some very light pulverulent stuff for them to make their first start in. This is
magic method No. 1. Now for magic method No. 2. Prepare a lot of large pots
with drainage half their depth, and over that fill up with very light stuff of a
quality that will be little likely-to go dust-dry, unless much neglected. In July
prepare long cuttings, and instead of inserting them upright, as cuttings are
usually put in, lay them on the surface and bend them round to fit the shape of
the pot, and peg them firm. They will soon make roots at every joint, and if you
know how to follow up the practice, you will make as many plants of them as
there were leaves in the first instance.

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VL— THE SPECIES AND VAKIETIES OF IVY.

Flower in the crannied wall,

I pluck you out of the crannies ;

Hold you here, root and all, in my hand.

Little flower — but if I could understand

What you are, root and all, and all in all,

I should know what God and man is."

TENNYSON.

EDERA HELIX represents an interesting
genus of plants allied to the Aralia of China,
and the Adoxa of the British, flora. The
generic name is said to be derived from
the Celtic, and to express the climbing
character of the plant. The French call it
Lierre ; the Germans, Epheu ; the Dutch,
Eli mop; the Italians, Edera ; the Spa-
niards, Hiedra ; the Russians, Bljustsch.
In the natural system the genus Hedera is
placed in the order AHALIACE^, an order
consisting for the most part of handsome
trees and shrubs.

The characters of the order are leaves
usually alternate, calyx adherent to the
corolla, corolla five to ten petals, stamens
equal in number to the petals, inserted with

them in the ovary ; ovary inferior, fruit a berry. Between Hedera and Aralia
there are many points of obvious resemblance, especially in the details of fructifi-
cation, the umbels of Aralia racemosa, for example, being so much like those of
the common ivy as to indicate their relationships to the most casual observer.
Equally easy of determination is the close relationship of Araliacece to Umbelliferece,
for the flowers in both families are produced in umbels, and in fact the only definite

THE IVY.

distinction between them is to be found in the form of the young fruit, which in
Araliaceas invariably consists of three to five or more carpels, but in Umbellifereaj
consists always of two carpels. In the order Araliacece there are not many plants
of great importance, but a few deserve mention as relatives of our evergreen Ivy,
which is certainly the most important of them all. Panax quinquefolium, a native
of Chinese Tartary and North America, was once celebrated as furnishing the well-
known drug called Ginseng, the highly extolled properties of which are now
believed to have no existence except in the imagination of the Chinese, and the
plant itself has ceased to be a favourite in our gardens.

The characters of Hedera are — calyx with an elevated or toothed edge ; petals
five or ten, not calyptrate, and cohering ; stamens five to ten, converging or
consolidated ; the berry five or ten celled.

How many species of ivy are known to botanists? The " English Cyclo-
paedia" says " there are fifty species of ivy enumerated, all of which are of easy
culture." * It will be found a difficult matter to establish three species ; and it is
highly probable that all known ivies may be reduced to two.2 The standard authors
on British Botany, such as Withering, Smith, Deakin, Hooker, and others,
describe Hedera helix, the wild ivy of Britain, as a matter of course ; but have
little to say about its peculiarities of growth or its extraordinary sportiveness.
Bentham adds to his excellent but brief description, that " several varieties are in
cultivation, differing chiefly in the more or less divided leaves ; and one, with
yellow berries, introduced from the continent, has become almost wild in some
parts of southern and western England."3 Dr. J. D. Hooker, in his " Student's
Flora," speaks of its leaves as " very variable," and indicates, without distinctly
stating his opinion, that the "so-called Irish ivy, ... a doubtful native of
Ireland," is not specifically distinct from H. helix. Considering that some of the
variegated -leaved varieties are referred to by Pliny as being in cultivation in his
time, we might expect to find mention of them in the more copious of our older
works on gardening, but such is not the case. Parkinson's " Paradisus
Terrestris," published 1629, contains no reference to the plant at all, although we
find "Hedera virgmiana" in the index, this being the well-known deciduous
"Virginian creeper," the Ampelopsis hederacea of modern botanists. Miller's
description is quite worthy of him. He points out the distinction between the

1 "Natural History" section, article HEDERA.

3 £T. umbellifera of Amboyna is intentionally ignored.

3 " Illustrated Handbook of the British Flora," 374.

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THE SPECIES AND VARIETIES OF IVY.

scandent and arborescent growths, notices the capability of the plant to sustain
itself on masonry when isolated, remarking that "where any small parts of the
stalks are left, they will soon spread and multiply," and adds that u there are two
varieties, one with silver-striped leaves, and the other with yellowish leaves."1 He
also regards the Virginian creeper as an alliance of the ivy, and describes it as
" Hedera quinqiiefolia"

It is but recently that serious attention has been given to the subject in a
thoroughly scientific manner, and we are especially indebted to the late much
lamented Dr. Berthold Seeman for a sensible attempt to dispose of its several diffi-
culties. It might be an easy matter to present a short summary of the results
of the investigations of this eminent botanist and traveller, but there can be no
fairer way than to reproduce here, in its entirety, an article of his published in the
" Journal of Botany " in 1863, entitled

"THE IVIES OF EUROPE, AFRICA, AND ASIA.

" Whether there is only one species, or several, mixed up with the plants
which now go in gardens and herbaria under the name of Hedera Helix, and make
up the genus Hedera, as now circumscribed, and whether one or two species are
indigenous to the British Islands, are still open questions. No botanist has
as yet been successful in finding good characters for what have been considered
as species ; and though all other Hederaceaa have a limited geographical range,
Helix is supposed to be an exception to this rule, and to be spread over three
continents, Europe, Asia, and Africa, from the Canary Islands to Japan, and that
this circumstance alone sufficiently accounts for the numerous existing varieties.
After carefully investigating the subject, and examining every specimen I could
lay my hands on, aided by contributions from botanical friends, I have
arrived at a different conclusion. I can clearly distinguish three distinct species,
which, though having each many varieties, do not run into each other, and have
each a distinct geographical range. If these different species had to be named
anew, I would propose to call them respectively the European, the African, and
the Asiatic. The European ivy is Hedera Helix, Linn. It is not found out of
Europe, and may at once be known by its uppermost leaves being ovate, or ellip-
tical, its umbels arranged in simple racemes, and its pedicels and calyx being
covered with white stellate hairs, having from six to eight, but never more, rays.
From time immemorial a variety with white and yellow variegated leaves has been

\ " Gardener's Dictionary," sixth edition, 1771, article HEDERA.

Inflorescence of Irish Ivy.

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cultivated in gardens ; even Pliny mentions it ; indeed it is one of the oldest, if
not the oldest, variegated garden plant of which we have any record. The fruit of
H. Helix in Northern Europe is generally black ; in Germany it occurs occasionally
with white : and in European Turkey, Greece, and Italy, with yellow berries. The
black-fruited kind has always been considered as the true H. Helix, and the white
as a variety of it, which indeed it is ; but the yellow has been made, I think
unjustly, into a distinct species, and named H. poetarum by Bertoloni, and some-
time previously H. chrysocarpa by Walsh. It is the latter plant which played so
important a part in ancient Greece and Rome, its leaves supplying the materials
for the wreaths with which poets were crowned, and at the festivals in honour of
Dionysos, all casks, vessels, amphoras, &c., were decorated ; it was customary
even to lie and sit upon ivy branches on those occasions. It is believed tradition-
ally that the yellow-fruited ivy came from India with the worship of Bacchus ; and
the fact that the Nepal ivy described by Wallich has yellow fruit is regarded as a
proof of the correctness of this tradition. But a close examination of the Euro-
pean yellow-fruited plant shows that it is specifically identical with H. Helix, and
specifically different from the Nepal and all other Asiatic specimens. If the worship
of Dionysos gradually crept from India to Greece and Rome, and a yellow-fruited
ivy was deemed essential to its proper performance, there was no need of carrying
the Asiatic plant into Europe, as an indigenous variety (chrysocarpa = poetarum)
occurred at the very threshold ; whilst the Asiatic ivy, as we shall presently see,
is spread from the central highlands to the most western confines of Asia — to
ancient Colchis. The African ivy is Hedera canariensis, Willd. It is found in the
Canary Islands, Madeira, and the north of Africa, and may at once be known by
its uppermost leaves being cordate, its umbels arranged in panicles, rarely and only
in young plants in simple racemes, and its pedicels and calyx being covered with
white stellate hairs, the hairs having from thirteen to fifteen rays. To this must
probably be referred what is called in gardens Scotch or Irish ivy. It is a much
quicker growing plant than H. Helix, and on that account more frequently planted
in gardens, but is much more susceptible to cold, and in Germany often killed by
frost. At some time or other this species is said to have been introduced into
Ireland, and has hence received the name of H. Hibernica in our gardens ; but I
have not been able to learn anything authentic about this introduction, or whether
it has been introduced at all. At present, Dr. Moore, of Glasnevin, informs me it
is found to all intents and purposes wild in various parts of Ireland, growing
together with H. Helix, and far away from cultivation. Mackay also mentions it as
having been found in Ireland. I have not been able to examine any specimens of

< -s wild Irish ivy, and our British floras do not afford any information respecting it.

V J^ The Asiatic ivy is Hedera colchica, C. Koch. It is not found out of Asia, and
may be known by its uppermost leaves being elliptical, or lanceolate, its umbels
arranged in simple racemes, and its pedicels and calyx being covered with yellowish
two-lobed scales, the lobes being opposite each other, and divided into seven or
ten segments. Our first knowledge of this plant is derived from Kaempfer, who
two centuries ago found it in Japan, where it is called * Fotogi Isa' (i.e. Simulacri
seu idoli Hedera). It was afterwards gathered by Wallich and other collectors in
the Himalaya mountains, by Fortune in Northern China, by Wright in the Loochoo
Islands, and by C. Koch in the Trans- Caucasian countries. Wallich was the first
to describe the plant, though he did not venture to separate it from H. Helix ; in
fact, the important character furnished by the scales escaped him. It was not
until 1859 that C. Koch, who had seen it wild, named it colchica, and gave a
correct diagnosis of it. It is owing to an authentic specimen kindly transmitted
by him that I am able to identify this new species with the Asiatic ivy — as I am
indebted to the Rev. R. T. Lowe for a sight of the Madeira ivy. Hedera colchica
is now an inmate of our gardens, it having been found on the Caucasian coast of
the Black Sea by Mr. Rongner, formerly curator of the botanic gardens of Odessa.
Thus it found its way into our gardens, occurring here and there under the (I
believe unpublished) name of Roegneriana. The only two popular accounts of this
plant are given by Wallich and C. Koch. In Nepal it is called Sagooke or Gooke (i.e.
the climber), and is, says Wallich, ' one of the most common as well as the most
jfl noble productions of Nepal, where it grows to a majestic size, and extends over
trees and rocks.' In Trans- Caucasia, on the contrary, it is more stunted than the
European ivy, having reached its western geographical limit ; and, says C. Koch,
' I have never seen it ascend the tops of the numerous beeches of that country,
whilst the common ivy climbed to the highest branches.' Though there are
several important peculiarities to distinguish the three species, the most ready way
to make sure of them is to look at the character furnished by the hairs and scales.
They are largest in H. Helix, where they may be seen distinctly with a common
pocket lens ; but in the other two species it requires a greater magnifying power to
make their nature quite intelligible." 1

In a paper on the classification of ivies, communicated by the author to the
Linnaean Society in 1869, the reputed difference of the stellate hairs of Hedera
helix and Hedera canariensis were assumed to be sufficient to distinguish them as

THE SPECIES AND VARIETIES OF IVY.

57

separate species. A farther and frequent consideration of the subject favours the
conclusion that the differences between them, both structural and morphological^
are not sufficient to establish a specific distinction. Very many examples of stellate
hairs from the pedicels of both plants have been examined under the microscope,
and in not a few instances have they been found to vary in construction to such an
extent as virtually to destroy this character as determining a boundary line between
them as species. The stellate hairs of H. helix have occasionally more than eight
rays, and those of H. canariensis have occasionally fewer than fifteen. Veritable
hairs from the Irish ivy have actually been found with only eight rays, and the
hairs on the sharp-leaved Irish ivy (V. Hodgensii) appear to be uniformly fifteen
rayed, and are more decidedly scaly than those of the plant we regard as the type
of this section of H. hedera. The inquirer who can forget for a time this reputed
distinction and will observe the more obvious characters of garden ivies, and will
next proceed to investigate the characters of ivies in the woods, will soon be
shaken in any faith he may hold in the theory that the plants are specifically
distinct. In the woods of the Vale of Conway, and especially in Gwydir, almost every
form of ivy ever imagined, figured, or described (save and except the variegated
forms, of which there are probably none), may be found, that is to say, if we judge
them by the shape and size of the leaves only. Here may be seen the smallest
forms of helix and the longest-lobed triangular forms of helix, and a regular
gradation through the whole series of green-leaved varieties, the largest leaved
of which come so near to canariensis as to be indistinguishable from it by any
observer of ordinary carefulness, though one well used to ivies may be able to say
that they lean more to helix and are but highly -developed forms of that type. The
" Lucida" and " Lobata major" of the enumeration that follows may be instanced
as approaching nearest to canariensis of any of the permanent garden forms of
helix. If the distinction we may suppose established by the stellate hairs is
reduced to a hair's breadth, and the distinction afforded by the most typical forms
of each is also reduced, where the departures from types tend towards each other,
to a hair's breadth, what are we to say after all about the value of that distinction
in the determination of species ? The so-called Irish ivy is found in Portugal,
the Canary Islands, Madeira, and the Iberian Peninsula ; in Ireland, it is found on
walls near Merrion, in the district of Killarney, and on thorn trees in the western
part of the Phoenix Park, near Dublin.1 The sharp-leaved variety ( V, Hodgensii)
was originally found in Wicklow, but has been noted as occurring on walls near

1 "Journal of Botany," 1864, pp. 202, 381.

#

f

i

Merrion. This is just a parallel case to that of the variable helix of the woods of
Conway, and it probably affords less evidence of the distribution of the Asturian
flora than of the influence of temperature and humidity to modify the characters
of a plant to such an extent that the helix of a warm country shall, after long
enjoyment of conditions especially favourable to development, prove so far unlike
the helix of a cold country as to afford some warrant for regarding it as a separate
species. In the case of H. colchica there is no such difficulty. The two-lobed
scales, divided into seven to ten segments, are so different to the stellate hairs of
H. helix and H. canariensis as to justify a specific distinction; and then how
greatly does the plant differ in morphology and constitution ; so that, although it
is a veritable ivy to the unscientific observer, it is to careful and careless observers
alike a very different plant to any variety of helix or canariensis. There are pro-
bably only two species of ivies known ; but it may be convenient for the present
to group the several varieties around three conspicuous centres, and, for all useful
purposes, three species may be recognised, and Dr. Seemann's diagnosis for the
present should, we think, be allowed to stand.

To account for the multitude of varieties is perhaps less difficult than to
determine the species. The ivies fruit freely under certain conditions, and, when
varieties far separated in size and shape of leaves come into proximity, crosses
result, and what follows may be judged by what we see. There can be no doubt
that the most distinct and permanent varieties are of seminal origin, but a few may
be such as gardeners term " sports," that is to say, propagated from adventitious
shoots that have presented abnormal characters, such as variegated leaves or a
peculiar conformation of lobes, and by careful cultivation the distinguishing
characters have been preserved. Having grown thousands of ivy plants obtained
from woods, rocks, ruins, &c.. we can safely aver that such as present a variety
of characters usually revert after a year or two to a distinctive type, while those
that present one distinctly-marked character with some degree of uniformity
usually continue in it and become distinct and interesting garden varieties. It is
one of the most attractive facts of this most fascinating pursuit that a various
leaved ivy we may meet with in the woods — and they are far more abundant
than botanists and plant collectors appear to have any idea of at present — does not
long continue various leaved under cultivation, but soon settles down into some
decided character ; whereas if we obtain a plant or a part of a plant on which the
leaves are somewhat uniform in size and shape, we may reckon on establishing it
as a variety, and it may prove to be worthy of a distinctive name. A plant so
variable within the contracted limits and comparatively narrow range of climatal

s

f

mm

influences which these islands afford may be fairly expected to " break out" when
transported to Madeira and the Canary Islands ; and so, if it can but be agreed
that the English and the Irish ivy are in the end one and the same plant, there is
nothing more surprising in the relationship thus established than the earnest ivy-
hunter will meet with when in the same wood he finds a plant of helix producing
leaves not larger than a sixpence, and another producing leaves that he cannot
cover with the palm of his hand. The " rough and ready" system of settling
the "origin of species" is not altogether valueless.

It has been assumed hitherto that all ivies tend to a fruiting state and to the
production of fruit in common with most other plants. There may be, however,
forms that are absolutely sterile, although no satisfactory proof has been obtained
to remove the statement out of the realm of conjecture. Dr. Hooker says "the
small sylvestral form, with longer leaf lobes and often pale nerves, never flowers." l
The small sylvestral form, selected to furnish the enclosing borders of this work,
does frequently flower and bear abundance ©f fruit, and, of necessity, it has first
to climb to the tops of trees and form arborescent tufts long before it acquires a
state of fruitfulness. But as flowers destitute of stamens and flowers destitute of
ovaries may be found by those who will search for them, and entire corymbs con-
sisting of monoecious flowers, it becomes highly probable that some varieties are
permanently unproductive of fruit. But to say of any form that it u never flowers"
is rather to declare insufficiency of observation and undue haste in arriving at a
definite conclusion.

The sketch on page 60 was hastily made from a group of leaves arranged as
represented, to illustrate their extreme diversities of size and form. The largest
leaf shows the average shape and dimensions of the Irish ivy, the others are forms
of Hedera helix. If we declare these to be forms of one species only, how
wonderful is its range of variations !

This dry chapter may, we trust, be appropriately concluded with a few lines
from Sir Richard Blackmore : —

" Your contemplation farther yet pursue ;
The wondrous world of vegetables view!
Observe the forest oak, the mountain pine,
The towering cedar, and the humble vine,
The bending willow, that o'ershades the flood,
And each spontaneous offspring of the wood !

Student's Flora," p. 172.

ff

THE SPECIES AND VARIETIES OF IVY.

The oak and pine, which high from earth arise,
And wave their lofty heads amidst the skies,
Their parent earth in like proportion wound,
And through crude metals penetrate the ground;
Their strong and ample roots descend so deep,
That fixed and firm they may their station keep,
And the fierce shocks of furious winds defy,
With all the outrage of inclement sky.
But the base brier, and noble vine,
Their arms around their stronger neighbour twine.
The creeping ivy, to prevent its fall,
Clings with its fibrous grapples to the wall."

61

Sylvestral ivy, Delamere Forest, Cheshire.

VIL— DESCEIPTIVE LIST OF. GARDEN IVIES.1

" Many a niglit from yonder ivied casement, ere I went to rest,
Did I look on great Orion eloping slowly to the west."

TENNYSON'S " LOCKSLEY HALL."

GROUP I. — GREEN-LEAVED CLIMBING FORMS OF HEDERA HELIX.

HELIX, The common wild ivy (syn. Helix minor). — This is the commonest
form of H. helix as a wild plant in Britain. It is the wild ivy of the woods and way-
sides in the midland and eastern districts of England, and the one most frequently
met with attached to elm trees in hedgerows. The growth is wiry and elegant, the
leaves usually five -angled, the central lobe being sharply cuneiform, and the two
lobes forming the base obscure, rarely suppressed. The average length of a mature
leaf from the point of the insertion of the stalk to the point of the central lobe is
less than one and a half inches, the breadth across the lateral lobes more than one
and a half inches. The colour of the leaves is a deep green, with distinctly-marked
whitish veins. The five principal veins marking the median line of each of the five
lobes is slightly raised above the surface like a thread laid on. In autumn the
leaves acquire decisive stains of purplish bronze. This ivy, which may in the loose
language of the day be denominated the " species," is an extremely elegant plant,
quickly forming useful pyramidal specimens when grown in pots, and answering

1 The names printed in parentheses are those by which the varieties are best known in
gardens and nursery catalogues.

V

a

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES.

admirably to clothe banks and rockeries, and for edgings to flower-beds. The
subjoined figure represents it faithfully.

Helix.

PUSTULATA, The blistered ivy (syn. Lobata Taurica, Taurica Leeana, Helix
major'). — A large form of the so-called species, quite common, though peculiarly
distinct. The most casual inspection is sufficient to determine the claim of this
variety to a name on account of its distinctness. The growth is free and robust.
The leaves vary from being nearly equally and bluntly five-lobed, remotely suggest-
ing the form of digitata, to a more distinctive five- or six-lobed form, the central
lobe being sharply wedge-shaped. The basal line of the leaf approximates to a right
angle to the line of the stalk. The colour of the leaf is a full green, the principal
veins being raised like threads laid on, and the blade marked with obscure blister-
like irregularities of the surface. The figure at page 64 very faithfully represents
the blistered surface of the leaf, which is a constant character of the variety. It is
one of the best for clothing banks and to form marginal lines, and is not unworthy
of culture as a pot plant.

HETEROPHYLLA, Various -leaved ivy. — This variety was selected from a batch of
seedlings at Stoke Newington : it is eminently beautiful and distinct, of a rich
deep green colour, and in habit combining the features of a climbing and a fruiting
ivy. Free and robust in growth, but more inclined to lateral than perpendicular

^e3*^*^

DESCEIPTIVE LIST OF GAKDEN IVIES.

extension. The leaves are large, smooth- surfaced ; colour bright grass-green. In
form they vary from regular ovate, without lobes, to obscure three- and five-lobed.

65

'-^

/

As it occasionally produces fruiting shoots and entire leaves predominate, it ^g
approaches nearest in these particulars to the arborescent section ; yet, as it has

\

Gracilis.

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES.

had the same characters as now from the first, and as it climbs freely, and is a
true wall-ivy, this appears in the end to be its proper place.

GRACILIS, Slender ivy, — A light elegant plant with wiry stems of a warm
purple colour, and leaves usually three-lobed, placed rather far apart, rendering
the wiry stems conspicuous ; the colour rather light dull green, richly bronzed in
autumn ; the principal veins rise slightly in relief. The leaves curl slightly, and
are seldom sharply lobed. A very pretty wall-ivy or to clothe a tree- stump.

TORTUOSA, Twisted-leaved ivy (syn. Glymii). — A very fine and distinct form
of helix. The growth is scarcely robust, and rather wiry ; the leaves vary in

Tortuosa.

form from regular ovate to long wedge-shaped, many of them being obscurely
three-lobed. The colour is a deep dull green, overspread with blotches of blackish
bronze. The form and colour of the leaves are characteristic features, but they are
moreover peculiarly glossy, and every one is more or less curled and twisted, the
twisting increasing during cold weather. One of the finest in this series, and,
while fit for every purpose in the garden, is particularly adapted for pot culture.

LOBATA MAJOR, Large-loled ivy (syn. Sagitt&folia). — This is one of the
largest forms of helix, and may be easily mistaken for a form of canariensis. In
growth free and robust, leaf- stalks and young shoots greenish purple; leaves full
deep green, rarely touched with bronze, surface hard and glossy ; lobes three to

i

five, the three major lobes boldly produced, the central one being broad wedge-
shaped. In the woods of the Vale of Conway, North Wales, this form may be

Lobata major.

frequently met with. It is constant in cultivation, peculiarly bold and handsome,
and soon makes a noble specimen.

SAGITT^FOLIA, Arrow-leaved ivy. — Quite distinct and interesting. In growth
free and wiry, running far and filling up slowly. Leaves usually bluntly three-
lobed, the centre lobe projecting forward in the form of a letter V. The colour is
dull dark green with a few patches of blackish bronze, which change in autumn to
a rich purplish bronze ; the principal veins are light green in colour, and slightly
raised above the surface.

LUCIDA, The shining ivy (syn. Poetica).— -This is the "poetica" of gardens,

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES.

but it is a question if it has any pecu-
liar claim to the designation. It is
at once the largest and handsomest
form of helix. In growth very free
and robust, quickly covering a large
space, and producing a perfect felt
of lateral shoots. The leaves are
large, in form mostly deltoid and
without lobes, but a few are obscurely
three- to five-lobed. A fine speci-
men pyramid, with the young shoots
of the season pendent about it, pre-
sents a beautiful appearance, the
young shoots being purplish, the
young leaves bright grass-green ;
the older leaves deep holly-green,
overspread in winter with fine
chocolate or purplish bronze. This
and Tortuosa are the most glossy
varieties in this section, and because
of its peculiar brightness, "lucida"
appears to be an appropriate name
for the so-called " Poet's "ivy.

RUGOSA, The wrinkled-leaved ivy
(syn. Helix major, Jersey helix). — A
distinct but scarcely beautiful variety.
It grows freely and produces large
leaves, which are various in form, the
majority being deltoid with a rounded
base. But scattered about the plant
will be found two kinds of leaves
peculiar to this variety and none
other. One of these has five rounded
lobes, the front lobe being shield-
shaped ; the other is three-lobed,
the lobes rounded in outline, and
the whole surface puckered and blis-*

Sagittjefolia.

i

70

THE IVY.

tered, and BO peculiarly tinged with yellow as to appear as if slightly powdered
with gold-dust. Interesting and curious.

NIGRA, The Hack-leaved ivy (syn. Willseand). — A dark form of pustulata,
the leaves less blistered, the veins less distinctly marked, the colour much darker
in the summer, and in winter deepening to almost black. This variety was
received from Mr. Wills, of Edgbaston ; it has always been constant in its
characters. It is figured on page^TS, and in the coloured plate at page 62.

Lucida.

CONTRACTA, Contracted-leaved ivy (syn. Sagittcefolia} Taurica, Helix minor.') —
A pretty small-growing variety in the way of Gracilis ; the leaves very variable in
form, many of them resembling those of the typical helix, others much Contracted
and approaching the outline of an arrow-head. Figured at page 73.

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES.

SCUTIFOLIA, Escutcheon- shaped-leaved ivy (syn. Cordata). — A distinct but
unattractive variety : it is not robust in growth. The leaves are of medium size,
roundish triangular, or obscurely three-lobed, dull green, the veins obscurely
marked. Figured at page 74.

Rugosa.

DELTOIDEA, The blunt triangular ivy (syn. Rhomboidea-obovata latifolia). — One
of the most distinct and peculiar in the collection, and, though a dull unattractive
plant, strikingly interesting to an amateur in ivies. The stem is purplish and
rather stout, the leaves rather distant, stiffly and uniformly set ; in form bluntly
deltoid or shield-shaped, usually overlapping at the base, a character quite unique.
In substance the leaves are leathery, in colour blackish-green, changing in autumn
to a sombre purplish bronze. Figured at page 75.

CINEREA, The grey-leaved ivy (syn. Himalalca}. — Very distinct and interest-
ing ; scarcely robust, but growing freely. The leaves are smallish and peculiar in
form and colour ; in some instances they are three-lobed and nearly triangular, in
others the central lobe is prolonged, and has a few sharp subsidiary lobes and
notches on the side ; the colour is greyish-green, the lines of the principal veins
being a lighter grey than the blade, and inclining to a milky hue. This is the
most tender variety in the section, a severe winter damaging its appearance
considerably. Figured at page 76.

!

THE IVY.

TRILOBA, The three-lobed-leaved ivy (syn. Baccifera lutea). — A neat variety,
selected from a batch of seedlings of the yellow-berried ivy. The leaves are usually
three-lobed, dark green and glossy. The leaf selected for the figure on page 76 ~ /

Nigra.

I

presented a remarkably sharp outline. The figure at page 84 represents its
ordinary character.

PALMATA, The palmate- leaved ivy. — A neat, rather slow- growing variety, with

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES.

73

Contracts.

THE IVY.

1

fc

Scutifolia.

medium- sized three- to fiye-lobed leaves, which tend to a palmate appearance,
owing to the breadth of the base and the obliqueness of the side lobes. It belongs

to a distinct group of three, consisting of pal-
mata, crenata, and digitata, in all which
there are points of resemblance ; nevertheless
they are quite distinct when they attain matu-
rity, though they resemble each other closely
when young. The colour of this variety is a
dull deep green. Figured at page 77.

CRENATA, Wrinkled-leaved ivy (syn. Pal-
mata, Vitifolia, Digitata, Digitata nova). —
This is intermediate in form and colour be-
tween palmata and digitata. The leaves are
broad, usually five-angled and digitate, but
less distinctly so than those of digitata ; the
edges are much crenated, and the colour is a
light grass-green. A handsome free-growing
variety. Figured at page 79.
DIGITATA, Finger-leaved ivy (syn. Palmata^ Crenata, Pennsylvania). — The
finest variety in this group, and easily distinguished from the other two by its
more decided digitate outline, and its fine dark blackish green colour, on which the
whitish veins show up brightly. It grows freely, making a fine pot-plant, and is
pre-eminently adapted for a ruin. Figured at page 80.

The three closely related varieties — palmata, crenata, and digitata — are so
mixed up and confounded together at the nurseries that it is most difficult to obtain
either of them true. This accounts for the confusion of synonyms, and for the
frequent statement that the differences are in name only ; yet the distinctive
characters are easily traceable, Palmata being dull green and rarely digitate ;
Crenata being light bright green, and slightly digitate ; Digitata being very dark
green, deeply digitate, and larger-leaved than either of the other two.

CQSPIDATA MINOR. — A pretty small-leaved variety, distinctly cuspid. The
young stems are purplish, and the leaf-stalks are bright reddish purple. The leaves
are placed far apart ; they are uniformly three-lobed, and the lobes are equal and
crenated, the colour a deep rich glossy green with whitish veins.

ANQULARIS, Angular- leaved ivy (syn. Tauricd]. — A robust, free-growing,
handsome plant; leaves of medium size, bright green, and glossy, having no
peculiarity of conformation sufficiently striking to arrest the attention of a casual

f
k

!p

(

5^-^r^ir^

t\ ^* J^i qp*^ ^j

75

at

^ar-st-y^-jar^

76

THE IVY.

observer. The prevailing form is that of helix major, but the lobes are less dis-
tinctly marked, and the boundaries of the side lobes approximate to straight lines :

Cinerea.

Triloba.

from this character the name is derived. Worth having for its bright grass -green
colour, glossy surface, and rapid growth.

PEDATA, Foot-leaved ivy (syn. Digitata, Chrysocarpd). — A very distinct and
fine variety, growing freely and adapted for any purpose, but particularly fine on a
ruin. The leaves are mostly five-lobed, the central lobe long and narrow, the side
lobes similarly narrow but shorter, the outlines sharp and decisive, the form of the
leaf bearing a remote resemblance to that of a bird's foot. The colour is dark
green, with whitish veins very sharply marked in bold relief. As this is a true
climbing ivy, it should not be named Chrysocarpa, as it is usually in trade collec-
tions. The fruiting form is not in cultivation, but no doubt it may be obtained by
planting out pedata and waiting until it assumes an arborescent growth. This
is usually described in trade catalogues as a " North Indian" ivy. It may be
found in the woods on the eastern slopes of Snowdonia by those who will patiently
search for it. Figured at page 82.

MINIMA, Smallest- leaved ivy (syn. Taurica, Donerailense, Pennsylvania.') — A
pretty and curious little ivy, a counterpart in form of pedata, but the leaves attain

f

DESCEIPT1VE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES.

77

only half the size of that variety, are less distinctly veined, and in winter assume a
deep, dull purplish brown colour. Though curious and pretty, it is scarcely to be

Palmata.

valued because of its strange winter colour, which renders it an undesirable variety
for pot culture except in a collection, where undoubtedly it will prove interesting.
Figured at page 83, and in the border of the coloured frontispiece.

GROUP 2. — VARIEGATED CLIMBING FORMS OF HEDERA HELIX.

A. VARIEGATION WHITISH OR " SILVERY."

MARGINATA, The white-margined ivy (syn. Argentea elegant). — This repre-
sents a large and lovely group, the members of which differ sufficiently to have
separate recognition, yet very closely agree in their general characters, the leaves
being broadly margined with whitish or creamy variegation, and the central parts
of the leaf showing tints of grey and_ bluish green, with patches of dark
green. Marginata. has green stems; the leaf -stalks are slightly purplish. They

Crenata.

are bluntly triangular ; the ground colour dull green, mottled with patches of bright
green, and a thin wash of grey ; the margins creamy white, brilliantly striped

and blotched with deep carmine or purplish pink
in autumn. Figured at page 88, and in the
coloured plate at page 78.

MARGINATA GRANDIS, Grand-margined-
leaved ivy (syn. Marginata robusta, Arborescens
marginata, Tricolor). — This properly belongs to
the marginata section, and it very nearly resem-
bles Marginata major. It is, however, distin-
guishable by its broader leaves and massive
appearance, and still more by a decided tone of
blue in the green part of the leaf. It is boldly
margined with creamy variegation, which never
tends to any tone of yellow. It is a true climb-
ing ivy, running freely, yet the wood is stout and
produces many short spurs that resemble those which in the arborescent forms
produce fruit. A splendid ivy, the finest of all this section for pot culture.
Figured at the foot of the plate at page 62.

MARGINATA MAJOR, Large-margined-leaved ivy (syn. Marginata argentea,
Marginata pulcliella, Marginata elegantissima, Silver Stripe). — An extremely
beautiful variety. The secondary name " major" is applied to this because in
habit it is more robust and larger-leaved than any of the rest, save and except
Marginata grandis. The leaves are broad, obscurely lobed, the colour deep bluish
green, with broad margin of rich creamy variegation, which has a decided yellow
tinge. Makes a beautiful pot-plant, and is the best of this group to plant on
walls. In common with other popular varieties, this has been received under a
great diversity of names, the margined-leaved series having been sadly confused
by the nurserymen. Figured at the top of the plate at page 78.

MARGINATA MEDIA, Medium-margined-leaved ivy (syn. New Japanese,
Japonica variegata, Japonica argentea). — This beautiful variety agrees with
Marginata grandis in general character, but is much less robust in habit, and the
variegation is of a creamy white colour, without a trace of yellow. It forms a
charming pot-plant.

MARGINATA MINOR, Small-margined-leaved ivy (syn. Marginata argentea,
Folius argosencens (/), Marginata elegans, Cavendislii, Marginata latifolia). — A
number of plants bearing different names are here grouped as one variety, for the

^

simple reason that we cannot discover any differences amongst them. Marginata
minor is the smallest of the series, with the exception of Marginata rubra, which
is distinguished from all the rest by its fine deep red margin. Marginata minor
has small angular deltoid or shield-shaped leaves, obscurely lobed, the central part
of the leaf dull olive-green, slightly washed with grey ; the margin a clear cream

Crenata.

colour, passing into pinkish red on the edges after September, but never acquiring
so decided a tone of red as the next. A pretty pot -plant, but not robust enough
for walls. The spray on the left hand in the frontispiece is Marginata minor.

MARGINATA RUBRA, Red-margined-leaved ivy (syn. Callisi, Elegantissima,
Argentea rubra, Latifolia elegans, Tricolor, Marginata pulcliella). — This agrees
with Marginata media in all essential particulars, but is distinguished by the
bright deep rosy red hue of the extreme edge of the leaf. The red colour does

)

80

THE IVY.

not appear until September, and after that date it increases in intensity until the
end of the year, after which it becomes again faint, and in the spring passes away.
A slow-growing and decidedly tender variety. In the plate at page 78 the red-
edged leaf on the right, near the foot, is Marginata rubra.

Digitata.

SUB-MARGINATA, Faintly-margined-leaved ivy (syn. Rhomlea variegata,
Marginata major, Rhomboidea japonica, Japonica variegata, New Japanese). — A
very distinct form, which has a different name in almost every nursery. The
leaves are of medium size, of a rhomboid form or inclined to irregular spoon-
shaped ; the colour is a deep bluish green, margined with a thin line of whitish
variegation, with a few faint touches of red added in winter. Easily distinguished
from all the rest in this section by the paucity of the variegation and the bluish
tone of the green part of the leaf. Figured at page 89.

MARGINATA LACTEA, The milky-margined ivy (syn. Arlorescens alba lutescens).

— A true climbing ivy, though the nursery label declares it to be arborescent and
fruit-bearing. It is extremely beautiful and quite distinct. The stems are of a
deep purple colour, the leaf-
stalks bright reddish purple,
the leaves triangular, with ob-
scure, blunt, rhomboid, basal
lobes, or with occasional ear-
like lobes, projecting singly
and unsymmetrically. The
ground colour is dark green,
with a few faint blotches of
grey, overlaid with thead-like
whitish veins, the margin bright
cream colour, delicately lined
on the extreme edge with bright
pink in winter. This variety
grows slowly, but makes a
pretty pot-plant.

DEALBATA, The blanched
ivy. — A very distinct and pecu-
liar plant occurring frequently

in a wild state in the woods on the eastern slopes of Snowdonia, where it fre-
quently carpets the ground with a profuse growth of dark-green leafage, dotted
with leaves of a pure white. The leaves are usually equally three-lobed, small,
and varying but little in size or form ; many of them dark green, with a faint
powdering of white; others wholly blanched and semi-transparent; when grown
in a good soil, the growth becomes wholly green, but when grown in a soil con-
sisting chiefly of potsherds, broken stone, and coarse grit, it continues faithful to its
sylvan character. Figured in title page, top, right hand.

NEBULOSA, The clouded ivy. — This pretty ivy was found growing on the
parapet of the bridge which spans the little waterfall in the village of Dwygyffylchi,
North Wales. The stems are dark green when mature, purplish when young.
The leaves are smallish, in form usually sagittate, reticulated with whitish veins
on a green ground, or mottled and clouded with grey and yellowish white. It is
distinct enough to have a name and place. Figured in title'-page, top, left hand.

PELLUCIDA, The translucent ivy. — This is a remarkably beautiful variety,
obtained from one of the buttresses of the old stone wall of Conway. In habit the

f

plant is somewhat robust, with stoutish stems and medium- sized leaves of a blunt
quadrangular form ; these are mottled with green and white, or are wholly white
and semi-transparent, while the young stems are of the most brilliant tint of

carmine or coral red, and so
translucent that they may be
likened to threads of coloured
glass. Title-page, foot, left
hand.

DISCOLOR, Marble-leaved
ivy (syn. Minor marmorata,
Maculata). — An extremely
neat variety, with small broad-
ish leaves, varying from a
regular deltoid form to three-
and five-lobed, the lobes obtuse
and angular. The prevailing
colour is dark dull green, but
the whole plant is slightly
spotted with grey variegation,
the young growth being bright-
est, and having the addition of
a slight tinge of red. The
variegation is at its best in the
early part of the summer ; as
winter approaches much of it
passes away. Figured in plate
at page 78, top, right hand.

B. — VARIEGATION " GOLDEN."

MARGINATA AUREA (syn. Robusta). — A distinct and beautiful variety. The
young stems rather stout, and of a purplish red colour. The leaves elongate
triangular, delicately margined with faint orange yellow tending to red. A well-
developed plant has a strong tinge of deep yellow shading into red, but any
individual leaf that may be selected is comparatively faint in colour and the
character is not easily discernible. A fine ivy for walls, but not bright enough to

make a showy pot-plant, though in any case pleasing and peculiar, on account of
\ the prevailing faint orange tint. Frontispiece, right hand.

%

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES.

Minima.

SULPHUREA, The sulphur-leaved ivy (syn. Marginata canescens). — A weak-
growing and peculiar-looking plant, handsome when seen on a large extent of
wall, but not distinct enough for pot culture. The leaves are small, triangular,

THE IVY.

and flat, or spoon-shaped and concave, with small ear-like lobes. The varie-
gation is plentiful enough, but dull, the prevailing colours being pale sulphur-

Triloba.

yellow and impure cream colour, with about an equal proportion of a dull dark-
green ground. The plant has been received in one instance labelled Marginata
argentea ; a pretty example of the vagaries of nursery nomenclature.

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES.

85

CHRYSOPHYLLA, The golden-
leaved ivy (syn. Aurea spectabilisi
Aurea densa minor, Digitata aurea,
Aurea or golden, Aurea maculata,
Canariensis aurea marmorata, Foliis
aureis). — A distinct variety, which
has a different name in almost every
nursery where it is to be found.
There may be more than one variety,
ndeed, to justify the multiplicity of
names, but our plants, obtained from
various sources, and labelled as in the
foregoing list of synonyms, vary so
little that we have resolved to con-
sider them identical, and to make
the name Chrysophylla represent
them all. This is a free-growing
climbing plant in an in-
termediate condition, and
occasionally under pot
culture producing fruit-
ing shoots. The leaves are
broad, variously lobed,
but the lobes are always
obtuse and few in num-
ber, the greater part being
obscure. The variegation
appears in patches on the
young growth, many of
the leaves being wholly
of a deep yellow, others
mottled with paler yellow
on a green ground, a large proportion of the plant being of a dark green, with-
out any trace of variegation. A fine variety when planted out in a poor gravelly
or chalky soil, but under pot culture and in rich soil apt to "run out." The
golden spray in the centre of the frontispiece represents the young growth ; at the
foot, right hand, of the plate at page 62 is represented an old mottled leaf.

i

i

Marginata major.

CHRYSOPHYLLA PALMATA (syn. Palmata aurea). — The exact counterpart of the
last in colouring, but the leaves are distinctly palmate, with five blunt short lobes,

Marginata media.

SUCCINATA, TJie aniber-linted ivy. — A distinct and delicate variety, the gift of
W. B. Dunnett, Esq., of Dedham, Essex, whose collection, planted out on a rockery,
constitutes an extremely interesting feature of a beautiful garden. The stems

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN" IVIES.

are dark green when mature, but when young brilliant carmine or coral red. The
leaves are bluntly sagittate in form, and richly mottled with amber and pale green,

\/v

\

f)

^

it

\

\

Margin ata miiior.

occasionally of a rich yellowish cream colour without a trace of green, and in other
cases streaked with emerald green on a ground of clear amber. The plant is
so constant that it matters not in what kind of soil it is grown. It is faithfully
figured at the foot, right hand, of the title-page.

Sub-marginata.

89

90

THE IVY.

x^

GROUP 3. — GREEN-LEAVED FRUITING OR ARBORESCENT FORMS OF HEDERA HELIX. $

MELANOCARPA, The black-fruited ivy (syn. Arborescens, Baccifera nigra). —
The arborescent or fruiting form of Hedera helix, the common European ivy.
The growth is tree-like, stout, and frequently branching ; the leaves are uniformly
ovate, varying in breadth and without lobes, light grassy green, glossy, and the

Discolor.

veins obscurely marked. This is the form in which our British ivy is usually met
with on ruins and old walls and on the upper parts of old trees, &c. — wherever,
indeed, it has ceased to climb and has formed a branching tree-like mass of
vegetation. The arborescent form of H. helix is much less sportive than the
climbing form, but not wanting in variety, as the members of this group will show .
The commonest form of the plant is represented in the figure A, page 94, which
may be termed the ivy of ruins, as distinguished from all others. The leaves are
rarely lobed, the growth is compact, and a few scattered stem-roots occur on tha
young shoots, which enable them to grip the stone and obtain a firm hold before
they branch out into smooth twiggy shoots bearing umbels of flowers. The
figure B, page 95, represents a more diffuse habited plant, with leaves occasionally
lobed and stems quite destitute of holding stem-roots.

CORRUGATA, Crenated-leaved black-fruited ivy (syn. Palmata digitata, Helix
incisa, Baccifera crenata). — A pretty and distinct tree ivy, which grows freely and

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES.

soon forms a handsome pot-plant. The leaves agree very closely with those of
" crenata." It bears fruit plentifully.

Sulphurea.

THE IVY.

LATIFOLIA, The broad-leaved Hack-fruited ivy (syn. Baccifera latifolia). —
A fine tree ivy, with broad ovate leaves of a deep green colour. If judged by
its most obvious aspects it might be pronounced an intermediate form between
H. helix and H. canariensis (grandifolia), and a careful diagnosis might not make
anything else of it. It is the handsomest of the fruiting forms of H. helix.

CHRYSOCARPA, Yellow-berried ivy (syn.
Baccifera luted]. — The most beautiful
plant in this section, and one of the most
valuable hardy evergreen shrubs to grow
in pots for plunging in the outdoor win-
ter garden. The growth is dwarf and
compact, forming a dense, close, round
bush ; the leaves are ovate and entire, the
colour a fine, rich, full green ; the berries,
which are produced in great abundance,
are a dull deep orange colour, affording a
quite unique and novel feature when the
plant is used (as it is at Stoke Newing-
ton) with Skimmia japonica, Cratsegus
pyracantha, Pernettya mucronata, Coto-
neaster microphylla, the female form of
Aucuba Japonica viridis, and the small-leaved Hollies, in the plunging system.
The plant figured at page 44 represents one of our best specimens, when covered
with berries. It measures two feet across, and is only twenty inches high from
the rim of the pot. The clusters of berries on the plant selected numbered forty"
two. This is probably the true " poets' ivy," if the poets lay claim to any one in
particular, because it occurs frequently in Italy and Greece.

LEUCOCARPA, White-berried ivy (syn. Baccifera alba). — This variety is in the
Stoke Newington collection, if labels may be trusted ; but as it has not yet fruited,
the mention of its name must suffice.

Chrysophilla.

*

9

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES.

GROUP 4. — VARIEGATED-LEAVED FRUITING OR ARBORESCENT FORMS OF HEDERA

HELIX.

A. VARIEGATION WHITISH OR " SILVERY."

ARGENTEA MAJOR, Large silvery-leaved tree ivy (syn. Canariensis, Argentea
elegans, New silver). — If the laws of garden nomenclature were faithfully followed,
this should be Hedera helix arborescens (vel baccifera nigra) latifolia argentea
marginata — a trifle too much ! Perhaps the more simple name Argentea major
may be preferable. This is a true berry-bearing form, though its growth is
free and somewhat scandent. It is the counterpart in the arborescent series, of
Marginata grandis in the group of climbers, but surpasses that, and is the second
best variegated ivy known. The leaves are broad, varying from an angular
deltoid to a narrow ovate outline, with occasional obscure lobes. The green part
of the leaf is deeply and richly coloured, the green being such as may be termed a
v holly-green. The margin is creamy or whitish, broad and rich ; the whole leaf is
/ highly varnished. The trade names of this fine variety are extremely absurd.

ARGENTEA MINOR, Small silver-leaved tree ivy (syn. Marginata argentea,
Marginata aurea, Arborea var. Pincers new silver). — A more decidedly arbo-
rescent form than the foregoing, and one of the best of all the variegated ivies.
The leaves of Argentea minor are almost uniformly ovate and slightly concave,
but a few present short sharp side-lobes. The central part of the leaf is a deep
grey green, with broad margin of clear creamy variegation. It bears berries
abundantly, and is a true variegated form of Melanocarpa. One of the very best
for pot-culture for the conservatory, and for the edges of flower-beds. Figured in
the plate at page 78, second from top, left hand.

/

B. — VARIEGATION YELLOWISH OR

i

, I .TTmtnrvT A ^i^lt a A,

*^

LUTEOLA, The yellowish-tinted ivy (syn. Pumila aurea, Aurea spectabilis). —
This. is decidedly the finest variety of its class, having a vigorous constitution and
a superb character. The stems and leaf-stalks are usually green, but sometimes
slightly purplish. The leaves vary from a broad ovate outline to an irregular ^v
rhomboid, and occasionally a few very neat three-lobed leaves appear. The central
parts of the leaf are of a fine dark green, mottled with grey, the margin broad and \.J
of a rich yellowish cream colour. For conservatory specimen this variety cannot
be surpassed. Figured at foot, left hand of plate, at page 78.

SUB-LUTEA, The yellowish tree ivy (syn. Arlorescens minor lutea, Arborescens

-^^^^^e^

A

95

s

1^= TST-^C^

alba lutescens, Hedera var.). — The counterpart of Sulphurea, but a better plant,
and well adapted for pot-culture, as it makes a pleasing specimen, conspicuous in
winter by the abundance of its greenish -white and sulphur-coloured variegation.
It rarely produces fruit. Figured at page 107.

AUREA, The golden- leaved tree ivy (syn. Arborescens aurea maculata). — Garden
nomenclature would require this to be named Hedera helix arborescens foliis aureis,
but as the designation " aurea" occurs nowhere else in this list, it may be adopted
here, and should be sufficient for identification of the variety. This is a fine bold
plant, with ovate leaves like those of the common green-leaved tree ivy, those at
the ends of the young shoots being wholly of a clear deep golden colour ; strikingly
beautiful. Unfortunately this fine variety is inconstant. Figured at page 106,
and in plate at page G2, top, left hand.

GROUP 5. — GREEN-LEAVED CLIMBING FORMS OF HEDERA GRANDIFOLIA

(CANARIENSIS).

GRANDIFOLIA, The large-leaved ivy (syn. Canariensis, Hibernica,Vegeta). — The
Irish ivy is reported to have been found growing wild in Ireland, but "Hibernica"
is not a good name for it, because it is a scarce plant there, and in like manner
" Canariensis " is an objectionable specific designation, because this species ranges
far beyond the Canary Islands, not only northward to Ireland, but southward to
the continent of Africa. It is to be hoped the name now adopted may not offend
for more than a moment those who know how many and how great are the diffi-
culties of botanical nomenclature. There is but one other ivy which could dispute
with this the title of large-leaved, namely, the one known as Ecegneriana ; but
that has a distinctive character in the leathery texture of its leaves, which readily
suggests an appropriate name. Hedera grandifolia is not a very variable plant.
The growth is remarkably free and robust, and it is the best of all ivies for clothing
walls and large knolls quickly with a rich green carpet, and it is also well adapted
for making bold broad edgings, and for forming large handsome pyramids in
pots. The leaves are borne on long reddish or purple petioles ; they are usually
five-lobed, the centre lobe being larger than the side lobes, but occasionally extra
large leaves are produced with five equal lobes, radiating as from a common centre,
not projecting forward as in digitate varieties. The texture of the leaf is papery,
the surface is quite smooth and hard, the colour is a rich deep green. Many inte-
resting varieties have been selected here from amongst seedlin gs but none that are
at present worthy of names and places in this list.

^

IT5

DESCKIPT1VE LIST OP GARDEN IVIES,

97

98

THE IVY.

VIRIDIS, The light-green ivy (syn. Algeriensis). — A light green form of
grandifolia, distinct in many particulars, but easily traceable, as its relationships
are obvious. Leaves large, varying from entire broad ovate or orbicular to a
peculiar rounded three-lobed form, texture papery and smooth, colour yellowish
green. A grand ivy for outdoor verandahs as well as for walls, its cheerful colour
in the early part of summer being peculiarly acceptable. It also forms a noble
pot-plant. Figured at page 99, and in the centre of the frontispiece.

GROUP 6. — VARIEGATED-LEAVED CLIMBING FORMS OF HEDERA GRANDIFOLIA.

VARIEGATA, The variegated large-leaved ivy. — A scarce variety, extremely
handsome and very distinct. It grows slowly, and is by no means robust ;
the leaf-stalks are purplish, the leaves broadish wedge-shaped or obscurely three-
lobed, the surface smooth and glossy, the colour of the central parts of the
leaf dark green, the margin bright primrose cream colour. All the leaves are
variegated alike, and the decided tone of yellow of the margin is common to them
from first to last ; it is scarcely paler in the old than in the young leaves. Figured
in plate at page 78, second from top, right hand.

PALLIDA, The pallid large-leaved ivy (syn. Golden-blotched, Hibernica, fol.
var., Aurea metadata, Canariensis var. aurea, Golden-blotched Irish ivy). — This is
well known, and deservedly so, for its beauty. It differs from the type only in its
variegation, which occurs irregularly in " splashes," some parts of the plant
being superbly coloured, while others are green, and differ in no respect from the
common ll Irish ivy." The variegation consists of a pale yellowish or primrose
colour, with which some leaves are entirely overspread, while others are half green
and half yellow, the mid-rib marking the division sharply ; others, again, are
blotched and patched with variegation. This never acquires a rich variegation,
except when planted out, and then it is usually a noble plant, though irregularly
coloured. Figured at page 100, and in the plate at page 62, centre, right hand.

MACULATA, The blotched large-leaved ivy (syn. Latifolia maculata, Marmorata,
Variegata). — The finest variegated ivy in the grandifolia group ; an extremely
beautiful plant. The young stems and leaf- stalks are a bright purplish-red colour ;
the leaves are broad, three-lobed, the lobes nearly equal in size, and occasionally
curled and wrinkled. The variegation overspreads the whole plant, consisting in
blotches, streaks, and dots of clear cream colour, intermixed with greyish green
and full dark green. The abundance and constancy of colour, and the free growth

r

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES.

99

Pallida.

of this variety render it invaluable for pot-culture. Figured at page 101, and in
the plate at page 62, centre, left hand.

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES.

CANESCENS, The hoary large-leaved ivy (syn. Algeriensis foliis variegatis). — A
distinct variety, which, is scarcely attractive when young, but extremely handsome
when it has been established some years. The leaves are mostly irregular ovate
in outline, rarely lobed ; the central part of the leaf consists of a greyish green
colour, resulting from the intermixture of a faint wash of the variegation over
& it, the result being a kind of bloom or hoary appearance ; the broad margin is
of a clear cream colour. Figured in centre of plate at page 78.

^

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES

Coriacea.

104

THE IVY.

GROUP 7. — GREEN-LEAVED FRUITING OR ARBORESCENT FORMS OF HEDERA

GRANDIFOLIA.

ARBORESCENS, The tree-like large-leaved ivy (syn. Canariensis arborescens,
Hibernica arborescens, Canariensis fructif era). — Sufficiently known, perhaps, as
the fruiting form of the Irish ivy, yet, as we sometimes see in pictures crowns of
large-leaved ivy overhanging turrets and buttresses, &c., incorrectly drawn, it may
be right to say, if only for the information of artists, that usually the fruiting
form of the Irish ivy has entire ovate leaves ; the occurrence of lobes is rare.
Under pot-culture this form varies considerably, now and then throwing out a
climbing shoot, making many partially-lobed leaves, and presenting the normal
characteristics of Viridis. Likely enough, Viridis of this list (Algeriensis of
gardens) is only a robust form of arborescens, which has partially run back to a
climbing state ; if so, the number of entire leaves Viridis produces is fully
accounted for. Figured at page 102.

CORDIFOLIA, Heart-shaped-leaved tree ivy (syn. Hibernica arborescens latifolia).
— A fine form of Arborescens ; the leaves are uniformly cordate, thicker in texture
and lighter in colour than those of Arborescens. It makes a beautiful pot-plant
of the same cheerful green colour as Viridis.

CUSPIDATA MAJOR, Cuspid-leaved tree ivy (syn. Hibernica palmate?). — We dis-
card the term "palmata" because it has been assigned to a variety of H. helix, and
repetitions are to be avoided. Besides, palmata is inappropriate, for the leaves are
uniformly three-lobed, all the lobes project forward, the centre being the largest ;
they are cuspid in outline, and peculiarly " cockled " at the bifurcations. The
leaf is thick and hard like parchment, colour deep, full, cheerful green. A
pretty plant. A faithful figure of a leaf is given at page 81.

GROUP 8. — VARIEGATED-LEAVED FRUITING OR ARBORESCENT FORMS OF HEDERA

GRANDIFOLIA.

FLAVA, Yellow large-leaved tree ivy (syn. Jledera arborea flava var.). — A
* splendid counterpart of Pallida, the variegation more abundant and a deeper
K tone of yellow. A decidedly arborescent variety.

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES.

STRIATA, Striped large-leaved tree ivy (syn. Hedera arlorea latifolia striata).
— A bold and handsome variety, with stout, broad leaves, which vary in form
from broad ovate or cordate to bluntly three- lobed ; the prevailing colour is a
bright cheerful green, sparingly striped and patched with creamy or yellowish
variegation. Figured in plate on page 78, bottom, right hand.

Argentea minor.
GROUP 9. — GuEEN-LEAVED CLIMBING FORMS OF HEDERA CoRIACEA OR CoLCHICA.

CORIACEA, The thick-leaved ivy (syn. Colchica, Rcegneriana, Cordifolia). —
This, the Asiatic ivy, is the Hedera Colchica of Koch, best known in gardens under
the synonym Rcegneriana. It is noble in habit, climbing freely, but somewhat
slowly. The young stems and leaf- stalks are slightly tinged with purple. The
leaves are large, frequently attaining to a length of seven inches, and a breadth of

five inches ; they are broadly cordate in form, usually blunt at the apex, but
sometimes elegantly acuminate. The texture of the leaf is leathery, the surface
hard and smooth, the colour deep green, finely varnished. Figured at page 103.

THE IVY.

A urea.

DENTATA, The toothed thick-leaved ivy. — An interesting garden variety of
Coriacea. In general form the leaf is cuneiform, but the outline is interrupted by
two short cuneiform lobes placed symmetrically on either side, and the edge of the
leaf throughout is beset with small sharp teeth rather distantly placed, and all
pointing forwards.

PURPUREA, The purple thick-leaved ivy. — A fine purple-leaved variety of
Coriacea ; the autumnal colour is sombre bronzy purple, mottled with dull green,
the principal veins being of a reddish colour.

DESCRIPTIVE LIST OF GARDEN IVIES.

GROUP 10. — GREEN-LEAVED FRUITING OR ARBORESCENT FORMS OF HEDERA

CORIACEA.

DENDROIDES, Tree-like thick-leaved ivy (syn. Rcegneriana arborea). — An extra-
ordinary plant, and the most tree-like of all the ivies. It branches freely, forming
stout wood. The leaves differ but little from those of the climbing form, but are
less inclined to produce lobes, and are usually somewhat narrower, and more
smooth and glossy. This may be mistaken for a rhododendron when the leaves
become somewhat narrowed by pot-culture.

PICTA, The painted thick-leaved ivy. — A handsome variety of the last named,
distinguished from it by rich mo tilings of bronzy brown, bronzy purple, and dark
green. To bring out the colours, the plant should be grown in a poor soil, and be
fully exposed to the influence of light and air.

>

Sub-lutea.

VIII.— SELECTIONS OF IVIES,

COMPRISING THE MOST DISTINCT AND BEAUTIFUL IN THE SEVERAL SECTIONS.

" Strange was the sight and smacking of the time ;
And long we gazed, but satiated at length
Came to the ruins. High-arch' d and iry-claspt,
Of finest Gothic lighter than a fire,
Thro' one wide chasm of time and frost they gave

The park, the crowd, the house."

TENNYSON'S

PRINCESS" (Prologue).

GREEN IVIES ADAPTED FOR WALLS.

The fast-growing green-leaved kinds are the best for all ordinary purposes,
and a select list should comprise Pustulata, Lobata majorj Lucida, JDigitata,
Grandifolia, Viridis, and Coriacea.

GREEN IVIES ADAPTED FOR TRELLISES, ROCKERIES, &c.

The small-leaved varieties best adapted for a display of distinctive characters
in positions where the elegant forms of their leaves will be seen to advantage are,
Helix, Triloba, Gracilis, Deltoidea, Cinerea (rather tender), Contracta, Pedata,
Minima, Cuspidata minor.

VARIEGATED IVIES FOR WALLS, TRELLISES, AND ROCKERIES.
The most robust and handsome of the variegated kinds are Maculata, Pallida ,

Canescens. For dwarf walls and select sheltered nooks in rockeries the follow-
ing are eminently desirable — Discolor, Sulphurea, Marginata grandis, Marginata $ \
major, Marginata aurea, Sub-marginata, Succinata, Chrysopnylla.

GREEN IVIES ADAPTED FOR BOUNDARY LINES IN GARDENS.
Pustulata, Heterophylla, Crenata, Lobata major, Grandifolia, Viridis.

VARIEGATED IVIES ADAPTED FOR EDGING FLOWER BEDS.
Marginata grandis, Marginata major, Succinata, Canescens.

GREEN CLIMBING IVIES ADAPTED FOR POT CULTURE, FOR FURNISHING FLOWER

BEDS IN WINTER.

Pustulata, Heterophylla, Tortuosa, Lobata major, Sagittcefolia, Rugosa, ^
Crenata, Lucida, Deltoidea, Minima, Grandifolia, Viridis, Coriacea. "fl

Melanocarpa, Chrysocarpa, Arborescens, Cuspidata major, Dendroides.

VARIEGATED TREE IVIES ADAPTED FOR POT CULTURE, FOR FURNISHING FLOWER ^
** BEDS IN WINTER.

Argentea major, Argentea minor, Luteola, Sub-lutea, Aurea, Flava, Striata.

GREEN TREE IVIES ADAPTED FOR POT CULTURE, FOR FURNISHING FLOWER BEDS

IN WINTER.

VARIEGATED CLIMBING IVIES ADAPTED FOR POT CULTURE, FOR THE CONSERVATORY. J^

*
(

Marginata grandis, Marginata major, Marginata media, Marginata minor,
Marginata rubra, Sub-mar ginata, Succinata.

VARIEGATED TREE IVIES ADAPTED FOR POT CULTURE, FOR THE CONSERVATORY.
Argentea major, Argentea minor t Luteola, Sub-lutea.

no

THE IVY.

" How sweetly sad our pensive tears
Flow o'er each broken arch that rears
Its grey head through the mists of years !
And where are now the dreams of Fame,
The promise of a deathless name?
Alas ! the deep delusion's gone !
And all except the mouldering stone,
The wreath that deck'd the victor's hair,
Hath, like his glory, withered there;
And Time's immortal garlands twine
O'er Desolation's mournful shrine,
Like Youth's embrace around decline."

MALCOLM'S " RUINS OF PALMYRA.'

INDEX.

K

The entries in small capitals represent names adopted in this work ; entrjes in italics represent synonyms
under which many of the varieties may be found in garden catalogues. The letter (H.) implies that the author of
this work is responsible for the names to which the letter is appended. The addition of (Hort.) to a name implies
that it is an established garden name.

Adhesive rootlets of ivy, 20
African ivies, 53
Alepole, a tavern sign, 12
Algerian ivy, 98
Algeriensis, 98
Algeriensis fol. var., 100
Amber-tinted ivy, 86
Ampelopsis hederacea, 52
ANGULARTS (Hort.), 74
Angular-leaved ivy, 74
Aralia related to ivy, 51
Arbor ea, 93
Arborescens, 90
ARBORESCENS (H.), 104
Arborescens alba lutescens, 80, 93
Arborescens aurea maculata, 96
Arborescens marginata, 78
Arborescens minor lutea, 93
Arborescent forms of Hedera helix, 90
Arborescent ivy, 45
Architectural botany, 38
Architecture preserved by ivy, 24, 31
ARGENTEA MAJOR (H.), 93
ARGENTEA MINOR (H.), 93

Argentea elegans, 93
Argentea rubra, 79
Asiatic ivies, 53, 105
Aspects for garden ivies, 35
Aurea, 85
AUREA (H.), 96
Aurea densa minor, 85
Aurea maculata, 85, 98
Aurea spectabilis, 85

Bacchus, rites of, 6
Baccifera crenata, 90
Baccifera latifolia, 91
Baccifera lutea, 92
Baccifera nigra, 90
Birds and ivy berries, 34
Black-fruiting ivy, 90
Black-leaved ivy, 70
Blackmore quoted, 59
Blanched-leaved ivy, 81
Blistered ivy, 63

Boundary lines, best ivies for, 108
Broad-leaved fruiting ivy, 91
Bush, a tavern sign, 12

1

Bush ivies, 47

Butterflies on ivy flowers, 34

Canariensis, 96
Canariensis arborescens, 104
Canariensis fructifera, 104
Canariensis aurea marmorata, 85
CANESCENS (H.), 100
Cato quoted, 33
Cattle-food, use of ivy for, 34
Cavendishi, 78

Cecilia MeteUa, tomb of, 13, 20
Change of growth of ivy, 19
Characteristics of the ivy, 17
Christmas garlands, 10, 32
CHRYSOCARPA (H.), 92
Chrysocarpa, 76
CHRYSOPHYLLA (H.), 85
CHRYSOPHTLLA PALMATA (H.), 85
Churches preserved by ivy, 24

ClNEREA (H.), 71

Climate, influence of, on ivy, 26
Climbing of the ivy, 19
Climbing varieties of H. helix, 62
Clouded-leaved ivy, 81
Colchica, 105
Colosseum, ivy of, 20
Colours of variegated ivies, 41
Common wild ivy, 62
Conservatory, ivies for, 41
Conservatory, best ivies for, 108

CONTRACTA (Hort.), 70

Contracted-leaved ivy, 70
Cordata, 71

CORDIFOLIA (H.), 104

Cordifolia, 105

CORIACEA (H.), 105
CORRUGATA (H.), 90
C REN ATA (Hort.), 74

Crenated-leaved fruiting ivy, 90

CulUsi, 79

Cultivation of the ivy, 40

CUSPIDATA MAJOR (H.), 104

CUSPIDATA MINOR (H.), 74

Cuspid-leaved tree ivy, 104

Cuttings of ivies, to make plants of, 49

Daphnis, garland of, 10
DEALBATA (H.), 81
Decorative art, use of ivy in, 38
DELTOIDEA (H.), 71
DENDROIDES (H.), 107
DENTATA (Hort.), 106
Dickens quoted, 4, 14, 30, 39
DIGITATA (Hort.), 74
Digitate, 74, 76
Digitata aurea, 85
Digitata nova, 74
DISCOLOR (H.), 82
Donerailense, 76
Druidical customs, 10

Edgings, best ivies for, 108
Edifices preserved by ivy, 24
Egyptian sculptures, 6
Elegantissima, 79
Escutcheon -leaved ivy, 71
Euripides quoted, 7, 26, 29
European ivies, 53

Faintly margined ivy, 80

Finger-leaved ivy, 74

FLAVA (H.), 104

Flower-beds in winter, ivies for, 108

Fodder, ivy leaves for, 34

Foliis aureis, 85

Foot-leaved ivy, 76

Fruiting distinct from climbing ivy, 19

Garden ivies, 2, 35, 40, 62, 108
Garlands of ivy, 7, 8
Geographical range of ivy, 26, 51
Golden-berried ivy, 5, 44
Golden blotched, 98

I

INDEX.

113

Glymii, 67

Golden-leaved tree ivy, 96

GRACILIS (Hort.), 67

Grafted garden ivies, 45, 50

Grafted ivy stems, 22

GRANDIFOLIA (H.), 96

Grand margin ed-leaved ivy, 78

Graveyard ivies, 38

Green-leaved arborescent ivies, 90, 104, 107

Green-leaved climbing ivies, 62, 96, 105

Grey-leaved ivy, 71

Growth of the ivy, 17

Heart-shaped-leaved ivy, 104

Hedera arboreaflava var., 104

Hedera arbor ea latifolia striata, 105

Hedera, characters of genus, 51

Hedera colchica, 56

Hedera, derivation tff} 51

Hedera helix, characters of, 62

Hedera helix, geographical distribution, 53

Hedera var., 96

Hederic acid, 33

Helix incisa, 90

HELIX (Linnaeus), 62

Helix major, 63, 69

Helix minor, 62, 70

Hemans quoted, 15

HETEROPHYLLA (H.), 63

Hibernica, 96

Hibernica arborescens, 104

Hibernica palmata, 104

Hibernica fol. var., 98

Himalaica, 71

Historical memoranda, 5

Hoary large-leaved ivy, 100

Holly and ivy, 11, 32

Horace quoted, 10, 29

Houses protected by ivy, 25

Howitt (Mary) quoted, 36

Intoxication arrested by ivy, 7, 33

" Ivy Green " (song) quoted, 4, 14, 30, 39

Ivy gardens, 27

Ivy Lane, London, 11

Japonica variegata, 78, 80
Japonica argentea, 78
Jersey helix, 69
Jews, persecution of, 8

Keats quoted, 15, 18, 31, 34

Large-leaved ivy, 96
Large-lobed ivy, 67
Large silver-leaved ivy, 93
LatifoUa elegans, 79
LATIPOLIA (H.), 91
Layers of ivy stems, 49
Leaves of ivy variable, 19
LEUCOCARPA (H.), 92 '
Life history of the ivy, 17
Light green ivy, 98
Limestone, ivies of, 26, 27
Literary memoranda, 5

LOBATA MAJOR (Hort.), 67

Lobata taurica, 63
LUCIDA (H.), 58
LUTEOLA (H.), 93

Maccabees quoted, 8

Maculata, 82, 98

MACULATA (Hort.), 98

Maecenas honoured with ivy wreath, 10

Mant quoted, 26

Marble-leaved ivy, 82

Marginata argentea, 78, 93

MARGINATA AUREA (H.), 82, 93

Marginata canescens, 83

Marginata elegans, 78

Marginata elegantissima, 78

MARGINATA GRANDIS (H.), 78

MARGINATA (H.), 77

MARGINATA LACTEA (H.), 80

<j

114

Marginata latifoUa, 78
MARGINATA MAJOR (H.), 78
Marginata major, 80
MARGINATA MEDIA (H.), 78
MARGINATA MINOR (H.), 78
Marginata pulchella, 78
Marginata robusta, 78
MARGINATA RUBRA (H.), 79
Marmorata, 98
Medical uses of ivy, 33
Medium margined-leaved ivy, 78
MELANOCARPA (H.), 90
Menalcas, carved bowls of, 9
Milky-margined ivy, 80
Milton quoted, 35
MINIMA (H.), 76
Minor marmorata, 82

National names of the ivy, 51
* Nature-grafted ivies, 22

^ NEBULOSA (H.), 81
**" Nepal ivy, 56

New Japanese, 78, 80
New Silver, 93
Nicoll quoted, 32
] NIGEA (H.), 70

Nomenclature of garden ivies, 2

^ £ Origin of the ivy, 9
Osiris, rites of, 6
Ovid quoted, 9
Owl and ivy, 35

Painted thick-leaved ivy, 107
PALLID A (H.), 98
Pallid large-leaved ivy, 98
Palmata, 74
Palmata aurea, 86
Palmata digitata, 90
PALMATA (Hort.), 72
Palmate-leaved ivy, 72
Parasitic ivies, 22

INDEX.

Parkinson quoted, 52
PEDATA (H.), 76
PELLUCIDA (H.), 81
Pennsylvania, 74, 76
PICTA (H.), 107
Pince's New Silver, 93
Poetica, 58

Poetry, relations of ivy to, 13
Poet's ivy, 92
Pot ivies, selection of, 108
Prefatory observations, 1
Propagation of the ivy, 48
Purple-leaved ivy, 106
PURPUREA (H.), 106

PUSTULATA (H.), 63

Raleigh quoted, 33

Red margined-leaved ivy, 79

RTwmbea variegata, 80

Rhomboidea japonica, 80

Rhomboidea obovata latifolia, 7.1

Robusta, 82

Rockeries, best ivies for, 108

Rcegneriana, 105

Roegneriana arborea, 107

Roegner's ivy, 56

Roots of ivy, aerial and terrestrial, 21

RUGOSA (H.), 59

SAGITT^FOLIA (Hort.), 68

Sagittcefolia, 67, 70

Screens of ivy for the ballroom, 46

SCUTIFOLIA (H.), 71

Seedling ivies, 18, 49

Seemann quoted, 53

Selections of garden ivies, 108

Shaded spots in gardens, ivies for, 37

Shakspere quoted, 16, 23, 28, 34

Shining ivy, 58

Silver-stripe, 78

Slender ivy, 67

Sloping ground favourable to ivy, 18

y

.

^

INDEX.

115

Slough collection of ivies, 1

Small margined-leaved ivy, 78

Small silver-leaved ivy, 93

Smallest-leaved ivy, 76

Snowdonia, ivies of, 27

Soils, influence of, on ivies, 26, 40

Species of ivies, 51, 52

Standard ivies, 43

Stellate hairs, specific value of, 53, 56

Stem-roots of ivy, 20, 49

Sterile ivies, 20, 59

STRIATA (H.), 105

Striped-leaved ivy, 105

SUB-MARGINATA (H.), 80

SUCCINATA (H.), 86

SULPHUREA (H.), 83

Sulphur -leaved ivy, 83

Syrphus ribesi on ivy flowers, 34

Taurica Leeana, 63

Taurica, 70, 74, 76

Tavern signs, 11

Tennyson quoted, 1, 5, 17, 31, 40, 51, 62,

The Bush, a tavern sign, 12

Thick-leaved ivy, 105 '

Tooth-leaved ivy, 106

TORTUOSA (H.), 67

Town Gardens, ivies for, 35, 37

Translucent ivy, 81

Tree ivies, 44

Tree-like large-leaved ivy, 104

Tree-like thick-leaved ivy, 107

Trees destroyed by ivy, 23

Trees injured by ivy, 25

Trees selected by ivy, 28

Trellises, best ivies for, ] 08

Triangular-leaved ivy, 71

Tricolor, 78, 79

TRILOBA (H.), 72

Twisted-leaved ivy, 67

108

Typical persistency of varieties, 58

Umbelliferse, relations of ivy to, 5 1
Umbrella ivies, 46
Uses of the ivy, 31

Variableness of the ivy, 37, 27, 51

VARIEGATA (H.), 98

Variegata, 98

Variegated arborescent ivies, 93, 104

Variegated climbing forms of Hedera helix, 77

Variegated climbing forms of Hedera grandi-

folia, 98

Variegated climbing ivies, 77, 98
Variegated fruiting forms of Hedera helix, 93
Variegated ivies, culture of, 40
Variegated large-leaved ivy, 98
Varieties, how accounted for, 58
Various-leaved ivy, 63
Vegeta, 96

Virgil quoted, 8, 9, 26
Virginian creeper, 52
VIRIDIS (H.), 98
VitifoUa, 74

Walls, best ivies for, 108

Walls, effects of growth of ivy on, 24

Walls, ivies for, 41

White-margined ivy, 77

Willseana, 70

Window gardens, ivies for, 35, 36

Wine and ivy, 7, 33

Winter garden, ivies for, 37, 92

Woodland ivies, 26

Wordsworth quoted, 14, 27

Wrinkled-leaved ivy, 59, 74

Yellow-berried ivy, 92

Yellow large-leaved tree ivy, 104

Yellowish-leaved ivy, 93

t

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