Growth like mountains or whipped topping on a sundae what it does, let it do what it wants or train onto a wall. Pulled up with a hoop I can't see as producing a specimen pleasant to look at.

Despite being an upright, shrubby growing form of ivy, it has a pretty lax growth habit. I grew it for years in my old garden and the 'branches' tend to lean outward, then upward, ofen trailing along the ground for a distance. Others that I have seen in landscapes, including a specimen at the Carl English Garden at the Ballard Locks, appear to grow similarly. If you can tolerate the look and have room, I'd be inclined to let it grow naturally without staking.

I have some rescued from my Grandmother's garden. It looks better as a start in a pot with some trimming than in the ground to me. I keep it only for sentimental purposes.

Fatshedera, a cross between Fatsia and Ivy, does the same thing, only on a larger scale. It's a weird cross. It's not successful as a shrub or a vine. Training does help in some cases.

OK, thanks everyone, I'm just going to let it do its thing then and see how it looks after a year or two. I'm now getting used to the idea of it flopping around in its space - it does have room to do so anyways.

Larry