Now that's a greenhouse - Ivy growth engulfs property

After a decade of neglect, this house has been left looking more like a giant hedge.

For a 10 years, ivy has been slowly creeping up, covering windows, walls and the roof of the house in Cradley Heath near Stourbridge. Now the ivy is finally being removed by the home's new owner – to the delight of neighbours sick of the sight of it.

Neighbour Molly Boland contacted her local authority just over a year ago, and asked them to encourage the owner of Old Hill House, in Cradley Heath, to sell the property.

The 78-year-old said: "I thought I would phone them to see if they could do something about it. It took a while but I was delighted when they finally put it up for auction."

Mrs Boland said in the 10 years the house had stood empty the ivy had grown.

She said: "It was just horrible, and a real eyesore." The house was auctioned and sold for £116,000.

The new owner, who did not want to be named plans to renovate the house.

He has cleared out the inside and employed specialist company Shirley Ivy Stripping, from Solihull, to strip it of its ivy layer.

Company boss David Sidwell said: "This is the biggest job we have ever done, and will take around a week to complete. We will pull off all the ivy from the walls, and they we will have to work on the roof. That will be more difficult because I should think it will have gone under the tiles."

Mr Sidwell will then use his 'secret method' of removing all the tendrils.