English Ivy in June: monthly care

English ivy doesn't require regular pruning to stay healthy, but it does need controlling to prevent it becoming invasive or smothering other plants, gutters, and roof tiles. The main pruning window is March and April, just before the spring growth flush, and again in June if regrowth has been vigorous. Avoid pruning in frosty weather or late autumn when wounds are slow to callus. Use sharp secateurs for stems up to pencil thickness and loppers or a pruning saw for older, woody growth. Wear gloves—the sap can irritate skin, and some people are sensitive to contact with the foliage. Start by removing any dead, damaged, or diseased stems, cutting back to healthy tissue or the main framework. Then step back and assess the overall shape. If ivy is climbing a wall, trim it back from windows, doors, roof edges, and downpipes. Cut shoots flush with the wall or just behind where you want the edge to be; new growth will quickly fill in. On trees, remove ivy if it's reaching the canopy and competing for light, but ivy on the trunk alone rarely harms mature, healthy trees. For ground cover, shear or mow over the patch in early spring to rejuvenate tired growth and keep it dense. Hard renovation pruning is possible if ivy has got out of hand: cut the entire plant back to within 30–60 cm of the ground in March. It will resprout vigorously from old wood. After any pruning, clear away clippings promptly—ivy can root from cut stems if left on bare soil.