Oh boy, oh boy, oh boy!!!!! A real gardener person. You, me and Madisgram so far. Maybe we should create a gardening social group?!?
How very fortunate that your daughter & SIL have all that amended soil you left for them!I have Georgia clay - harder than concrete and not nearly as pretty! And yes, I know all too well that ivy can grow in the darndest of situations - I bet it could grow in the dark! And we have serious issues with kudzu here in Georgia - under optimum conditions it can grow 36" a day!
My method for killing ivy begins with patience. I mow over it or weed whack it so that it puts out a flush of new light green foliage then I spray it with Round Up/glycol phosphate, I think. My understanding is the cell structure of the new leaves is weak as compared to the strong old green leaves. The Round Up is a systemic herbicide and the young cells suck it right up! This is where the patience kicks in - do it like every 10 to 14 days for the rest of your life. No! Just kidding.
Stella de oro daylillies are nice in certain applications. The department of transportation uses them a lot here to plant on hillsides. They are supposed to be pretty good at holding soil in place. They are also drought resistant, another huge problem in GA.
You'll have to post some pictures especially the stone retaining wall! That sounds like fun!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Pexeva13
Hey Notz
I hear you about composting! My daughter and family bought the house we used to own, and I composted, amended, worked hard to improve the soil. Mostly it was sand or clay - not like the rich black soil from my home town in Grand Forks, North Dakota. But the soil I have here in Ohio is ok, I just have a wooded lot without much sunlight like you. It is an acher (can't spell today) of woodland, no grass, lawn grass that is, just ornamentals, it is all planted with groundcover and trees and the perennial beds. Very natural. Was very overgrown when we moved in. Oh, and did I mention, a ravine drop off, very sloppy back yard! Lots of shade. Nothing flat to speak of anywhere. OH, and ivy  Did you know that ivy can grow with just 1% light?
I'm going to get rid of the ivy over the next few years and replace it with a ground cover than won't grow up the trees etc. Our project for this summer is a stone retaining wall and I want to also get rid of the day lilies that bloom all summer, or at least are supposted to. The name is stell'dora or some such name, I know it when I see it, just can't recall the name today.  |