That is the strategy in my fight against the encroaching ivy. My 3 neighbours seem to have accepted that ivy is part of the countryside, this would be the sensible approach. However, I have never taken that route, and I will be fighting the stuff till the day I die. I think I stand half a chance of at least holding the line, and it looks better than a set of trenches.
The gravel now occupies an area that had the tree root and a sea of ivy