Heteroblastic woody climber (to 20 m or more) or creeper, older plants becoming shrub-like, usually with aerial roots along the stems. Hairs on young leaves and stems in vegetative shoots stellate, usually stalked, hairs white or off-white, rays 4–8(–10), of different lengths and projecting at a range of angles from the leaf surface, giving an irregular appearance. Leaves in non-flowering shoots 4–12 cm long, 4–7 cm wide, usually longer than wide, 3–5 lobed, often lobed > than ½ way to base with lobes usually longer than wide, lobes triangular or oblong, outline usually palmate and ‘ivy-shaped’, base rounded to truncate; upper leaf surface pale green to dark green, surface very variable, more or less dull or somewhat glossy; petiole 2–10(–13) cm long. Leaves on flowering shoots entire and elongate or oval, leaf-base cuneate, 3–13 cm long and wide; petioles 2.5–11 cm long. Inflorescence a panicle of umbels, with an umbel terminating each inflorescence branch; petals greenish; styles stout, united, c. 1.5 mm long, persistent. Fruit dull dark blue to black, 5–10 mm diam.
Wim, GleP, VVP, VRiv, GipP, OtP, WaP, Gold, CVU, GGr, DunT, NIS, EGL, EGU, HSF, HNF, OtR, Strz, VAlp. Also naturalised SA, NSW. Native from southern Spain to Norway, eastwards through Europe north of the Mediterranean to the Caucasus (McAllister & Marshall 2017).
Hedera helix is the less common of the two species of Hedera naturalised in Victoria, known only from Ballarat, and Hallston Forest near Leongatha, but possibly more common that collections suggest. In South Australia H. helix is also rare, with H. hibernica being the prevalent species (Chris Brodie pers.comm. July 2020).
The name Hedera helix has in part been widely misapplied to H. hibernica, the other Hedera species naturalised in Victoria. It differs from H. hibernica most significantly in trichome characters (diagnostic, see key), and in the leaves often lobed > 1/2 way to the base with lobes usually longer than wide, although the leaf character should not be relied on alone for identification and may not always be reliable, and 2n = 48 (Stace 2010).
Cultivated for its decorative foliage and dense climbing habit.
Records from the Victorian Biodiversity Atlas, and records from Australia's Virtual Herbarium that are not based on MEL specimens are not displayed on the map because it is unclear what species they pertain to.
Stace, C. (2010). New Flora of the British Isles (3rd edn). Cambridge University Press.
McAllister, H. & Marshall, R. (2017). Hedera: The complete guide. RHS Horticultural Monograph.
