Basically it can be said that there are no varieties of ivy with red leaves. The climbing plant only has green leaves, which are dark or light, or variegated white or yellow, depending on the variety and location. When ivy turns red, it is always leaf discoloration.
Why does ivy turn red?
Ivy turns red due to natural causes such as cool temperatures in winter, strong sunlight or poor soil. Anthocyanins, pigments in ivy, combine with sugar molecules under such conditions and cause the leaves to turn red.
Why does ivy turn red?
Ivy turning red usually has a completely natural cause that is usually not harmful. The red leaves often appear before winter. In this case, the leaf color indicates that the variety is particularly hardy. Sometimes the red color is caused by the location, rarely by a lack of nutrients:
- Cool temperatures (winter)
- too strong sunlight
- too poor soils
Ivy prefers shade to sunshine. When exposed to strong sunlight, it gets red leaves even in summer. You can see whether the sun is to blame for the discoloration because the leaves of the plant growing in the shade are still green.
If the reddening of the leaves is caused by a lack of nutrients, you should improve the soil with compost. It may also be advisable to apply a commercially available slow-release fertilizer (€12.00 on Amazon) in the spring.
What causes the red color?
Like all plants, ivy also contains certain pigments that, for example, give the leaves their green or variegated color. Ivy contains other pigments that belong to the class of anthocyanins.
Under certain conditions - such as when temperatures drop - these dyes combine with sugar molecules: the leaves turn red.
The same dyes also ensure that the fruits of the ivy turn from initially green to dark purple or black over the course of the gardening year.
Types of ivy that have red leaves
Not all types of ivy have red leaves. If you want your ivy to turn red in the fall, you should choose varieties like:
- Artropurpurea
- Nuthole
- Harrison
- Kobby
- Steinweiler
Tip
If the leaves of the ivy turn brown or yellow or even fall off, it is almost exclusively a care error. Watering is usually done too frequently. Fungal infestation or pests are only occasionally responsible for the discoloration of the ivy leaves.
