Hi Andrew, Looking at that great pic I was wondering what sort of damage that Ivy could do to stonework as apposed to brickwork.

Any ideas?

From experience Paul, I can tell you that ivy encouages rising damp, and dependant on the stone used can cause the stone to break up more easily when the frost comes. Once there are tiny fractures in the stone, the ivy roots in these to hold to the wall, increasing the fracture, which will again worsen at each frost....and so it goes on. Obviously the more substantial the wall, the longer it lasts, hard stone like granite is difficult for the ivy to penetrate, but soft freestones like sandstone is very very suceptible.

I've experienced problems like these with modern brick, thankfully only on a garden wall, not the house.

Thanks Gordon.

http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profiles0702/ivy.asp

An old postcard of Bellister Castle recently added to my collection.

Another old postcard of Bellister Castle, recently acquired.

An old engraving of Bellister Castle, dated 1875, and recently added to my collection.