Highly unlikely. If ivy was that easy to kill, they'd be trying that approach all over the Pacific Northwest, where ivy is the number one invasive noxious weed. Heck, I've even seen ivy come up through layers of black plastic covered with soil and mulch - the plant is nonstopable.

Thanks. That's what I thought, and I realize that I'll be pulling ivy for the rest of my life, but I really want that green backdrop.