How To Grow Ivy Indoors On A Wall [Quick Guide For Beginners]

With its winding vines, the elegant ivy plant is great for beautifying indoors, including the walls of your house. As a beginner, you might be clueless about how to grow the ivy plant indoors on a wall. We consulted with the experts to provide you with a guide.

To successfully grow ivy indoors on your wall, follow the beginner's guide below:

  • Plant your ivy

    • Choose your ivy 
    • Identify location
    • Identify container
    • Add soil to container
    • Move new ivy to container 

  • Take good care of your ivy

    • Water the plant
    • Ensure adequate sunlight 
    • Ensure suitable temperatures
    • Maintain adequate humid levels

  • Treat diseases or infestation

    • Cut off parts with disease
    • Get rid of pests

Keep reading to gain an in-depth understanding of how to grow an ivy plant indoors on your wall. Mentioned below are the ivy plants suitable for indoors. In addition, we cover ways of taking care of your plants and training them to climb a wall.

Boa plant mockup. Devil's ivy or Epipremnum aureum is a beautiful. - How To Grow Ivy Indoors On A Wall [Quick Guide For Beginners]

Botanical living room with grey sofa, green pillows and bookcase

Ivy in the interior of the living room. Selective focus.

Guide To Growing Ivy Plant On Your Indoor Wall 

With multiple variants, the ivy plant can beautify and adorn a wall, both indoors and outdoors. We will focus on growing ivy indoors. Let's go ahead and find out how to grow ivy from the guide below:

Plant Your Ivy

Scandinavian bathroom with vertical garden, white minimalistic i — Photo

There are several steps you need to observe to successfully plant your ivy indoors, including:

Choose Your Ivy 

White green garden brick wall and plants

The first step to take is to identify the ivy plant you desire to grow on your indoor wall. An example of an ivy  that you can plant is the duck foot. Its leaves are small, shaped like a duck’s foot, while the stems are red. It does well in containers or pots.  

Buttercup ivy is another indoor favorite. Its leaves are broad and yellow-green if grown in the shade, or bright golden-yellow when grown in a lot of sunlight. It produces tiny yellow-greenish flowers each year.

Shamrock is yet another hardy plant you can grow indoors. It has small dark-green leaves that form lush green foliage, making it an excellent choice for walls.

One more ivy that you can grow in your home is Manda’s crested. It is a very hardy plant with dark-green leaves with three to five lobes. During winter, its leaves develop a bronze tint.

You can choose the ivy plant you prefer from these and many other varieties. A plant that blends with your furniture, or color of your wall is a good idea.

You may have a liking for the plant's color or size of leaves. It all depends on how you want your wall to look when the plant has grown.

Identify Location 

Ivy thrives well in bright light, but not in direct sunlight. However, it can still do well in low to medium light. The only drawback is that the growth is reduced, and the variegated forms may end up being green. 

A good aspect of this plant is that you can grow it under artificial light. So you can take advantage of this if you don’t have much natural light. Otherwise, place it near a north, west, or east window to receive enough light. 

Identify Containers 

The type of pot you use is pretty much your preference. A plastic or clay pot will suffice. Plastic pots come in a wide variety. You can find one with a color or shape that you like. They also do not break easily. 

Clay pots on the other hand can break easily and do not hold water for long.

Whichever pot you choose, remember to adequately water your plants. 

Check out these plastic pots on Amazon.

The pot for your ivy should have a diameter that is 2 to 4 inches longer than the current pot it is in.

However, if the diameter is more than 4 inches, the roots will grow quickly and fill the pot. This will result in the plant taking longer to sprout. If you have used the pot before, wash it using mild soap and water before planting your ivy. 

Add Soil

You can buy your ivy and houseplant soil mix from a garden center. Put a layer of sand or gravel at the bottom of the pot. Next, fill the pot with soil 1 to 2 inches deep. 

Move New Ivy To Container

Gently remove the root ball of your new ivy plant from its container. Loosen the soil between the roots, and place it at the center of the pot, ensuring it is ½ inch away from the edge. Finally, fill up the pot with soil, pat it, and water the plant. 

Take Good Care Of Your Ivy

Office gardening concept

Below are ways to take good care of your ivy plant so that it may grow healthy and vibrant:

Adequate Sunlight

As earlier discussed, your ivy requires a lot of light. However, do not place it near the window under direct sunlight, because the leaves can burn and possibly die. You should choose a spot in your house that has adequate light, even though if is artificial. 

Suitable Temperature

Keep the temperatures around your plant around 60 degrees Fahrenheit during the day. At night, the ivy plant does well in slightly lower temperatures. Thus, you will need to adjust the thermostat to between 5 and 10 degrees less than the day temperatures. Having a thermometer handy will help you monitor the temperatures more effectively.

Water The Ivy

Ivy doesn’t do well with too much water, as it can develop root rot. Regularly check it by dipping your finger into the soil up to the base of the pot. If it feels dry, add water until the soil is saturated.

Wait until the soil is dry again, then you can water it. This means you'll be watering your plant twice a week. 

Spray water on the leaves once or twice a week, if you live in areas with low humidity levels, or during summer. 

Fertilize Your Plant

You may fertilize your plant during the growing season, once or twice a month from spring to early fall. Do not fertilize during winter to allow the plant to rest.

15-15-15 fertilizer formula will help your ivy grow healthy. However, ensure you read the instructions carefully to avoid giving your plants the wrong amounts of nutrients. 

Due to the accumulation of salt from the fertilizer, leach the salt from the soil. Do this by pouring large amounts of water and letting it drain at the bottom of the pot. 

Maintain Adequate Humidity Levels

Wooden vintage table or shelf with stone balance, over blurred scandinavian living room with wooden sofa and potted ivy plants, feng shui, zen concept architecture interior design — Photo

Increase the humidity levels when the leaves become limp or begin to wilt. You can improve the moisture levels of your plant by placing pebbles on the tray the pot sits on. Add water halfway up the pebbles. As the water evaporates, the humid levels will rise. 

Change Location Of Plant If Necessary

Even though you have identified the perfect spot, consider moving it to another location, if the plant is not growing well.

Wilting leaves mean you should move it to an area with more shade. Move the plant away from cool drafts coming from your air conditioner when temperatures drop too low. 

Treat Diseases Or Infestation

Indoor ivy plants can be infected by bacteria, fungi, or pests. The best thing to do is to cut off the diseased parts with a clean pair of scissors or pruning shears. 

Get rid of insects such as mites or aphids that attack your ivy by using organic insecticidal soap. This is a much healthier option for the plant and for those living in your home, instead of using toxic chemical insecticides. 

You can find this insecticidal soap on Amazon.

Train Ivy To Climb Your Wall

Ivy crawling upwards a wall on the backyard garden

After planting your ivy using the guide above, you'll need to train it to climb your wall. There are many ways of doing this. We will look at five methods:

Command Hooks

Stick command hooks on your wall, creating the pattern of how you want the plant to grow. Prune it regularly to contain the ivy in the areas you have designated for it.

These are command hooks you can find on Amazon.

Trellis

If your wall is wooden, making the trellis may be a good idea. Creating a path for your ivy requires hammering nails into a wall, and a stone wall may not be suitable.

Floating Shelves

Place shelves on the wall using adhesive or magnetic hooks, and then place the pots with the plant on top. The vines will grow downwards.

Metal Plant Hangers

With hundreds of metal hangers to choose from, you can fix your favorite that blends with your furniture.

Find these metal hanger suitable for indoor plants on Amazon.

Steel Mesh

Fixing a steel mesh on your wall gives your plant plenty of room to climb.

In Closing

Grandchild and grandfather with ivy plants. - How To Grow Ivy Indoors On A Wall [Quick Guide For Beginners]

Ivy is a popular indoor plant because it’s easy to grow and adds aesthetic appeal to a home. Depending on your preference, you can choose from many different indoor varieties available.

To grow healthy ivy on your indoor wall, follow the guide here from start to finish. There are several ways of maintaining  your plant in good health. Included, are methods of treating your plant when it is attacked by disease-causing bacteria, fungi, or pests.  

Finally, there are numerous ways to train your plant to climb the wall. Simply settle on a pattern you like for growing your plant.

Below are our previous posts on ivy that you may want to read:

Why Is English Ivy Dying

Ivy Geranium

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