On the finding Hedera helix ‘Cavendishii’ in the Nikitsky Botanical Gardens

An old British ivy cultivar ‘Cavendishii’ is revealed in the Arboretum of the Nikitsky Botanical Gardens. It has persisted here as relict of cultivation since the XIX century. Stellate brushy trichomes on leaf blades evidence the plant belongs to H. helix . Morphological characters specific to the cultivar’s leaf blades in plants examined fit completely the descriptions, images and live specimen of ‘Cavendishii’ that received from Great Britain. The value of this finding is great: we get the early original version of an old cultivar that lost its certainty considerably because of huge synonymy, imposter clones and identification mistakes. Some historical and ecological factors that provided preservation of ‘Cavendishii’ in the Garden are discussed.