The genus Toxicodendron contains about 18 species, and several are found in North America, T. radicans, commonly called poison ivy, T. pubescens, Atlantic poison oak, T. diversilobum, Pacific poison oak and T. vernix, poison sumac. Actually plants are fine(you may cringe here if you wish), it's the oil, urushiol, contained within the plant parts that is the problem. Most humans (7 out of 10)are sensitive or will develop a sensitivity to it with repeated exposure. When the skin is exposed to the oil a rash develops in about 24-48 hours and small bumps that look like blisters indicate the effected skin. Itching for about 2 weeks till the rash dries up is not uncommon. A pharmaceutical lotion may be applied to alleviate the symptoms. I grew up in the concrete jungle of the city, islands of greenery did, however, dot the landscape. Daily life required you to watch out for cars and trucks, know which bus routes to take and the locations of stores, theaters and public buildings and how to get there. Plants? Plants grew in parks, some yards, and way out in the country. Oh, also my mother's house plants. I did however, hear about poison ivy when I was in kindergarden. We had a pile of sand outside our school room that if left to the creative minds of those wanting to get dirty, was populated with a beehive of excavated holes and "roads." Next to the sand pile staring at us from a rock wall was a healthy patch of the aforementioned plant, T. radicans. A warning that I was not paying attention to was reiterated by another 4 year old classmate as she said “Don't touch the poison ivory." Not being sure what poison ivory was I avoided anything green. That worked. As I became older and traversed the route to and from school, my meanderings, dictated by a curious mind would have me in contact with some of these islands of greenery. I still did not know what poison ivy looked like and suffered through several encounters with the mysterious plant. Toxicodendron dermatitis, itch, itch, scratch, scratch. Fast forward to the purchase of our present home. The yard was dominated by black raspberry plants. Initial efforts for removal told the plants that they were unwelcome. A few seasons of persistence on my part had the surviving plants cowering in remote places. Their jagged three leafed branches revealed their presence. Now smooth edged leaves became more noticeable. My old nemesis also inhabited the yard. On occasion my errant disregard for the type of weeds being pulled from the flower bed would have less than desirable results. Over the years identification was easier and contact was almost non existent. I still watched what I pulled and when the poisonous greenery was encountered I used plastic shopping bags to prevented contact. Inverting and tying the bag allowed for quick disposal. So what happens if we come in contact with poison Ivy? Contrary to popular belief, once contracted, poison Ivy is not contagious nor does it spread. It is the degree of exposure of the skin from the oil that is the culprit. Often less sensitive skin erupts after the initial exposure is noticed, leading people to thinking that the rash is spreading. According to some dermatologists a person has 5 minutes to wash the oil off of the exposed skin. I, because I have been repeatedly exposed, use two minutes as a must wash time, it works for me. Urushiol oil can remain on clothes, shoes and tools for up to 5 years. If you think tools, clothes, sneakers too, have been exposed, washing is a prudent action. You can be exposed to urushiol from a dead plant or in the dead of winter from a plant that is dormant(I speak from experience) :-( Be cautious when burning brush as breathing in smoke of burning plants containing urushiol can lead to very serious problems and a hospital stay. Poison Ivy can come in several configurations. A plant growing along the side of the road(very common), a bush as high as 3 feet(less common) or as a vine trailing along the ground or up a tree. I know of two titans of poison Ivy in my area, both in vine form, growing up a tree. Each has a stem of more than 4 inches in diameter. Both enjoying the tree canopy as a reward for their efforts. Neither is about to be removed. One is in protected wetland at my former workplace and the other is on conservation land in town. Each can stay as they are. I do have a want-to-be titan on a neighbors property but I leave it alone, it likes it that way, still, each year it gets bigger. O.K. then, lets go find some Poison Ivy…… Most of the time I spot the plant before it gets too big. I went to remove a small dead birch tree and found this vine next to the tree. ( photo / image / picture from Jerry Sullivan's Garden ) I save plastic shopping hags for disposing poison ivy. ( photo / image / picture from Jerry Sullivan's Garden ) The plant is dispatched without delay. ( photo / image / picture from Jerry Sullivan's Garden ) On occasion I do handle plants. ( photo / image / picture from Jerry Sullivan's Garden ) The plant still finds a similar fate. ( photo / image / picture from Jerry Sullivan's Garden ) The two minute rule applies here and hand washing is necessary. ( photo / image / picture from Jerry Sullivan's Garden ) Rule of thumb: when in doubt wash hands, tools and clothing. Oh! The want-to-be titan grows up a tree on my neighbors property. It has a long way to go before it is 4 inches in diameter. ( photo / image / picture from Jerry Sullivan's Garden ) If you live in a different area and want to scratch up a picture of a Toxicodendron relative to share. It might save someone an itching experience Jerry
About 25 years ago we were cutting back some overgrown bushes in our yard....previous owner had been too old to do it and I was expecting our first child when we moved here so time and events kept us from tackling the project for a few years. Neither of us even thought about poison ivy until the small red bumps appeared all up and down my legs the next day. By the day after that the blisters were between pea size and quarter size and all over my legs and ITCHED like H*** A trip to the doctor got me a steroid cream for treatment and almost two weeks later my legs were covered with scars but no more blisters. We finally got the vine on the road to H*** from whence it came with several 'killer' treatments, but to this day I still avoid that part of the yard and thankfully there have been no pop-up descendent's of the vile creature since then.
Jerry, excellent tutorial. I am not allergic but I do try to limit my exposure for fear of becoming allergic but as no one in my family has developed a late I'm life allergy I am optimistic. Now on the other hand.....my husband and one son seem to be of the same mold even though looking at them you wouldn't even remotely think they were related. All they have to do is see it and they break out it seems. I do all the yard and woods work where there is any question of it. Have you ever used Jewel weed to cure it? WONDERFUL weed to keep around for any and ALL skin eruptions.
Jerry,, somewhere here there are pics of my very old and very big poison ivy that grows in my grapevine ! Its probably at least 4 inches or more. Huge hairy vine. Its so old and big that it grows like a tree.
There are some really big ones out there Mart. I can only imagine the sap that would come out of one of these monsters. Jerry
Jewelweed, yes, I have some. I use to have hundreds if not thousands....then came the war of reduction. 85 to 90% were eliminated. Their plan to take over the yard was thwarted. Now they cower in remote areas of the back yard. Having suffered a major defeat by the armies of wood poppies and pachysandra. Their story is here: The invasion The counterattack and defeat Jerry
