From our perspective as English Ivy plants, we yearn to stretch our vines and unfurl our deepest green leaves. To achieve that lush, verdant canopy you desire, you must understand our dietary needs. Fertilization is not about force-feeding us; it is about providing the precise nutrients we crave to perform our best photosynthesis and grow vigorously.
We are not heavy feeders like flowering annuals. Our primary goal is foliage growth, not blooms. Therefore, we require a balanced, gentle diet. The three key numbers on a fertilizer label represent Nitrogen (N), Phosphorus (P), and Potassium (K). For us, a balanced formula like 10-10-10 or 20-20-20 is ideal. Nitrogen is the most crucial element for you to focus on, as it is the primary driver of our leafy, green growth. It is the fundamental building block of chlorophyll, the molecule that makes us green and allows us to convert sunlight into energy.
Our appetite changes with the seasons. During our active growing season in the spring and summer, we are metabolically active and can use the extra nutrients. This is when you should feed us. A light feeding once a month is perfect—think of it as a monthly supplement to the energy we already create from the sun. Please, never feed us in the late fall or winter. This is our time to rest. Fertilizing during dormancy is confusing and stressful; it can push out weak, spindly growth that is susceptible to cold damage and disease, ultimately harming our long-term health.
How you deliver the fertilizer is as important as what you deliver. Always, always ensure our soil is moist before you apply any fertilizer. Applying fertilizer to our dry roots can cause severe root burn, damaging our ability to absorb water and nutrients. Dilute a water-soluble fertilizer to half the strength recommended on the package. We prefer a gentle approach. Slowly pour the solution onto the soil around our base, ensuring it is evenly distributed and not splashing on our leaves, which could cause burns. For a slow-release granular fertilizer, lightly scratch the recommended amount into the top layer of soil and then water thoroughly to activate the release of nutrients.
More is not better. Over-fertilization is a far greater danger to us than under-fertilization. It causes a harmful buildup of salts in the soil, which pulls water right out of our roots—a process called fertilizer burn. Please watch for these signs of distress: the tips and edges of our leaves turning brown and crispy, a white, crusty layer of salt on the soil surface, or our leaves turning an unnaturally yellow color while the veins remain green. If you see this, stop feeding immediately and flush the soil with a large amount of water to leach out the excess salts.
