When to plant and prune Boston ivy
Boston ivy is grown for foliage and form rather than flowers and the dates below cover planting, flowering and the pruning window.
Planting, flowering and pruning by region
Boston ivy is grown to the calendar rather than to the frost, so the same dates apply across the whole UK and every region below reads the same. Where a plant’s timings do follow the frost, Plot shifts them from the Midlands and Lowland Wales baseline using Met Office average frost dates.
| Where you are | Plant | Prune |
|---|---|---|
| South West Coast and Cornwall | late March to mid May | early November to late December |
| South Coast and Channel | late March to mid May | early November to late December |
| Greater London (Urban Heat Island) | late March to mid May | early November to late December |
| South East and Home Counties | late March to mid May | early November to late December |
| East Anglia | late March to mid May | early November to late December |
| Midlands and Lowland Wales | late March to mid May | early November to late December |
| Wales and West Coast | late March to mid May | early November to late December |
| Northern England | late March to mid May | early November to late December |
| Scotland Lowlands and Central Belt | late March to mid May | early November to late December |
| Scotland Highlands and Islands | late March to mid May | early November to late December |
| Northern Ireland | late March to mid May | early November to late December |
| Channel Islands and Isle of Man | late March to mid May | early November to late December |
Growing notes
Self-clinging by adhesive pads on sound masonry, so it needs no trellis or wires, and gives the most reliable scarlet autumn colour of any UK wall climber. Plan a yearly winter cut back — pulling it off later strips the pads and leaves marks.
At a glance
- Spacing
- 250 cm between plants
- Eventual height
- 1000 cm
- Eventual spread
- 600 cm
- Hardiness
- H5
- Sun
- Partial
- Frost tender
- No
- Grows in a container
- No
- Balcony rating
- 1 out of 5
Feeding
An annual spring mulch is enough.
Pruning group
RHS pruning group 11: shorten to fit the space in early winter; it can also be cut back in summer if it is covering windows.
What usually goes wrong
- glasshouse red spider mite
- vine weevil
- honey fungus
Related guides
Timings cross-checked against RHS guidance for boston ivy.