Sounds like a typical site and project in much of Seattle or Portland. Hedera x hibernica and Rubus armeniacus are rampant in some districts. If you can't cut and pull then you are left with spraying. Either way, wear a mask and launder clothing afterward as there will be noxious material floating around in the air. Work and safety clothing outlets have disposable lightweight suits and booties you can put over your regular duds instead of exposing these, if desired. Cotton clothing like jeans may absorb and retain pesticides, despite laundering which will then be held against your skin later.

This has worked for me: first, cut the ivy near ground level. Then, when it resprouts, spray with Roundup at double the normal concentration. Keep on spraying every couple of months or so until the ivy is gone. One of the nice things about cutting first is that you can spray towards the ground at close range at the small regrowth, which minimizes the damage to other plants due to overspray. There may be other sprays which are more effective, but I use Roundup as my only herbicide.

Homer,
I had a similar ivy problem with our new home some 5 years ago - it's nasty and was the home of many rats which liked to winter in our attic. We got rid of it with a combo of Roundup and Crossbow, both applied separatly with a spreader-sticker (liquid dish detergent also works @ 1 tbs per gallon), because of the waxy surface of ivy. Took sev sprays as I remember. Don't start now - it's most effective during active growth periods, and when its dry, so that the spray will stick better. Early summer is ideal.

Five years later, I'm still pulling out stray ivy sprigs - it's the Kudzu of the Northwest! Good luck.
John

In response to John's point: it's true that Roundup works well when plants are in active growth. But for woody plants like ivy, this is also a good time to spray. Fall is when plants move nutrients into the root system in preparation for the winter. Roundup works really well in these circumstances. Eraser is the same as Roundup, and is cheaper. Here is a quote from the Eraser label: "Best results are obtained when application is made in late summer or Fall after fruit formation". "Do not treat weeds under poor growing conditions such as drought stress". So I would water the ivy BEFORE spraying, or spray just after the first rain. This assumes that you are going to spray without cutting, since there is no time for regrowth before Winter. If you are going to cut the vines, this is a great time to do it. You will greatly weaken the plants just before Winter. Then you can start spraying the regrowth in the Spring.

Good luck on your landscape renovation. I hope you're taking before-during-and-after pics! :)

You've already gotten great advice so the only thing I'll mention is that in addition to rooting along the stems, the ivy self-sows from seed (often passed along thanks to birds) so keep an eye open for seedlings too once you've gotten rid of the big plants. I probably find three ivy seedlings a week in my standard city-sized garden.

Good luck and keep us posted!
Take care,
Grant

Another idea that I have seen work well is to cut the ivy or blackberry close to the ground and using a small foam paint brush apply full strength roundup to the little stump. It works best if two people work together, one cutting and the other applying the herbicide.

This is a personal "war on terror": I have been removing a solid patch of ivy, 30' x 40' for 4 years now and it is 80% gone. Because I did not want to spray, the first thing was to allow myself time...this ivy has been established for nearly 20 years, so some of the mother plants were quite large.
My ground is hard clay, so I would water the night before whatever section I planned to remove, so it would not be sloppy wet when I worked it. I would "cut" a workable section (say, 2' x 3') with my shovel, or edger, or even a felco hand saw, and then I would dig under the section with the shovel to loosen the roots enabling me to pull it all out. Sounds simple enough, yet as you may guess, it's a tug-o-war, and at times I needed a pick axe to break away the really old roots. But, there is a certain sense of accomplishment to see progress happen section by section.

For the positives: I get lots of exercise, the time spent is for daydreaming and meditation, I don't poison my soil or the birds or any other living creatures, and none has grown back where I removed it. My landscaping plans are integrated with my removal plans, which helps to inspire getting the next section done...

Good Luck,
Dixie

There are many ways to eliminate English ivy, and I applaud any effort to remove this terrible invasive weed. However, it should be made clear that responsible use of Roundup to effectively control this plant will not "poison" soil or birds. Herbicides vary greatly in their toxicity and potential effects. Not all of them are as low in toxicity as Roundup, nor do all of them biodegrade completely as this product does. This is why groups such as the Nature Conservancy use Roundup in their habitat areas to remove invasives such as English ivy. Again, I'm not advocating its use by those who wish to choose other methods, but we should make sure to represent things clearly.

I've posted on my success with battling a huge ivy patch in our woods before.

For Homersgarden, I will just add to cut the stems of any ivy going up your tree trunks,let the leaves die off maybe 6 months and then pull off the now dead tree trunk runners. This way the little rootlets won't rip off bark and hurt the tree, as it might if you ripped off live ivy.

I was lucky and had very woodsy humus-rich forest soil to pull from, but that didn't make it easy! I pulled, rolled, bundled, and burned so many wheelbarrows full of ivy I couldn't count. It was a great green patch about 50x40' and knee deep in places and I'm happy to report that there have been very few returning sprouts. I just check there when I think of it and pull any new sprouts.

It is mindless work and good for exercise and stress reduction. Even 15 minutes a day will get the job done eventually.

Hello all. I am following this thread with interest as I prepare to eradicate ivy and blackberries myself. Everyone here mentions cutting down the ivy... what tool or method is best for this?

I use lopping shears, which you can buy for a few bucks at a hardware store. They are just a stem cutter with long handles for good leverage. I cut the vines within a few inches of the ground. I don't try to pull the vines off the tree, because of the mess and damage that makes.

Here is a link that might be useful: lopping shears

Thanks for the info, lilydude. Because of this thread I've been reading up on ivy, and I'm thinking of volunteering for the Seattle Ivy Eradication Project.

Arch enemy, or bower enemy?

I would definitely recommend RU. Rcently this summer I sprayed on a large area of Horsetail. Repeated every month .
I don;t see it anymore. It will probably reappear next year but I am sure it will be 90% less.

-LG

We moved to a house in SC in a very wooded lot. The previous owners planted ivy everywhere! :( I have pulled and pulled and pulled. But the main problem is the hugh patch that is gowing into the woods and up all the trees and hanging down yuck! I have cut the ivy around the trunks and now, I think I will spray - just too much digging! and I want it out of the woods!
Thanks for the ideas!
NO MORE IVY!