Easy to do, great looking and a lovely gift, its time to start growing an ivy topiary wreath if you want to give it as a Mothers’ Day gift or just as a pretty addition to your courtyard or garden. They are attractive and need little care except watering and twisting the growth around the wire frame. Well established wreaths need clipping back about twice a year.
You need:
* four or five ivy cuttings
* vase or jar with water
* potting mix
* pot
* clothes hanger
Select the size ivy depending on the wreath you want to make. This is a small leaf variety. I have two made with bigger ivy leaves which are much bigger wreaths.
Put four or five cuttings in water until small, thread like roots appear. I leave the vase out of sunlight in the kitchen until the roots appear.
Plant out the ivy and leave it for about six weeks to get established. I only use a fish emulsion on the new plant, but water regularly and keep it in dappled shade.
Now shape a coat hanger and bend the hook to a right angle to secure in the pot. I’ve made the circular frame from wire before but now just use coat hangers. I’ve also secured the base in a cut out circle of polystyrene in the past but now just embed the hanger in the soil.
Transfer the ivy to its final pot or embed the hanger in the existing pot. Gently twist the ivy around the frame. You’ll need to keep doing this every month. Soon you’ll have a pretty Ivy Topiary Wreath.
Today is Australia Day, the day Austalians reflect on what it means to be Australian, to celebrate contemporary Australia and to acknowledge our history. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders, and people from nearly every country in the would have created a dynamic society in an amazingly beautiful country. Today many Australians will enjoy a barbecue with friends and family and then, tonight, the wonderful fireworks all around the country.
Happy Australia Day!