Written for Crispina’s Crimson’s
Creative Challenge #047. I chose pic #1.
Here’s where the image took me.
Help me, people! Can’t you see
This ivy’s choking the life from me.
All this greenery on my trunk
Is a theory I must debunk.
I may look fit with healthy leaves
but vines are enemies to all trees.
They trap moisture and block the sun;
Tree rot and fungus are no fun!
Please help me live a normal life
Free from all this ivy strife!
If you see vines all over me
Cut them off and set me free!
NAR©2025
Nancy’s Notes: Vines can kill trees by blocking sunlight, constricting the trunk, retaining moisture, and competing for resources. Specifically, vines can smother the tree’s leaves, preventing photosynthesis and weakening the tree. Additionally, they can trap moisture against the bark, promoting decay and fungal growth. Thick vines can also weigh down branches, making them more susceptible to breakage.
from reaching the tree.
© Nashville Tree Conservation Corp.
This is “Bare Trees” by Fleetwood Mac
All text and graphics are copyright for Nancy’s Notes 🖊️🎶 and are not to be used without permission. NAR©2017-present.
The Elephant's Trunk 
A great write Nancy – ivy looks so pretty but can be deadly – great track by the way – I love Fleetwood Mac ❤️
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Sad but true, Ange. Removing it is a beast of a task so many gardeners simply cut the vine at the base of the tree. All that does is leave a dead vine wrapped around the tree …. a terrible eyesore! You can’t win!
Thanks for your great comments..
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It’s so tough and resilient
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💯
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They get away with it by looking so nice – nature’s smiling assassins!
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Ooh! That’s a great handle, dear Keith!
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nice
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And true. Thanks, Dylan.
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I never thought of that, even as I’m hauling copious grapevines off my lilac trees!
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Oh no! Get rid of them of else your gorgeous lilacs will be dead next year!
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Yah, it’s a semi-annual event…🤨
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Lilacs smell so divine.
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I’m on my way, hang tight!
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LOL! BYOS! Bring Your Own Snippers!
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Excellent PSA told poetically. 🙏🏻🌳🙏🏻 Reminds me of my childhood home (a few years anyway) that was covered in ivy that my mom planted. When she decided to tear it all off – ripped all the paint off of the front of the house! 😳
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It definitely leaves an impression! 😂 We have a similar story. My husband ripped ivy away from our house and there were ugly vine marks left behind. When he power washed the house, the stucco was blasted off! 😳 We ended up having to resurface and repaint! 🙄
Thanks for a great comment, Michele.
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Oh no! Guess plants don’t always beautify a house. 😒 That would be curb-a-peel. haha You’re very welcome and thank you for the replies and for appreciating. 😊
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Curb-a-peel. Very good!
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🙃🙏🏻🙏🏻
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“impression” 😂 👍🏻
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Beautiful, Nancy. So true, Ivy can be so invasive. Wonderful. 💕
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Thanks, Grace. Have a wonderful weekend.
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My pleasure. You too 💕
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We can feel tat desperation here. You’ve captured it so well.
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Thanks so much, Esther. It’s a very real problem with the determined ivy.
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Hmm, I’ve always liked the sight of vines wrapped around a tree. I had never stopped to consider what the vines were doing to the tree. I do love your poem, and I even learned something! Nicely done, Nancy. 🙂
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It does look beautiful and you’re not the only one who thinks that, Brenda! Vines are insidious and they’ll choke a tree in a couple of seasons. It’s a very difficult thing to control. Thanks for your comments.
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Much as I agree about the effects of ivy on our trees, against that must be weighed the volume of wildlife that ivy supports. But I’m not knocking your poem. Like it
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There’s always another side to the story, isn’t there? In residential areas, such as the one I live in, we rarely see anything larger than a rabbit and they’re happy with the hosta plants. It’s a never-ending battle with the vines. Thanks, Crispina.
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I have ivy in the garden (it screens an ugly wall), it is host to butterflies, dragonflies and a host of small songbirds. I even saw a mouse scampering there last week!
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Sounds lovely, Crispina. Our little critters love the honeysuckle.
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Nature is beautiful, wherever it’s found
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Nicely done.
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Thanks! I’m a tree hugger. 😊
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Very right my friend.
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Thanks so much, dear Sadje.
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You’re always welcome
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Ivy is definitely a killer, Nancy, …with nary a care for the ‘host’….highlighted to perfection, …💫🍀💫
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Thank you, dear Penn! It’s a grisly garden horror story!
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That ivy is very invasive, Nancy (your my 2nd blog tonight and I’m tiring already) …
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Hahaha! Poison Ivy …. I love it! 🥰
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Ah, Billy Thorpe and the Aztecs, one of my favourite live bands when I was young
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Great memories, dear Ivor! 🥰
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Yes indeed, Nancy was 😊🎶
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Beautiful Sis, you are so right Ivy is a killer of many things 💜💜💜
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It looks lovely but it’s nasty. Thanks, Sis!
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Ivy cottage sounds so romantic but it’s not 💜💜
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Whenever I see a house & chimney covered with ivy, the first thing I think of is spiders! 🕷️They like to hang out in the dense ivy and often wriggle their way inside. No thank you! 🕷️
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Ugh! No thanks 🙏
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