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Alabama Gardening

Reminder To Self: Dead Poison Ivy Is Still Poisonous

11 years ago

Midwinter . . . poison ivy?? Yep. Got it.

I couldn't figure out what was making my hands itch and racked my brain (such as it is) about everything I'd had my hands in recently. About the time the first blisters appeared it occurred to me that the day before the itching started I'd been pulling up some dead plants in the back of a bed where I had sprayed Roundup on some poison ivy last summer. I knew that even dead poison ivy stalks, roots, and leaves can cause a reaction. I just wasn't thinking about what those stalks were.

We get lots of PI seedlings because we live near a wooded area where it grows and the birds are very generous about sharing the seeds with us. I can easily pull up smaller ones with the plastic-bag-over-the-hand trick, but usually spray larger ones. Now to come up with a better way to identify and dispose of the bodies.

Comments (4)

Tiffany, purpleinopp Z8b Opp, AL
11 years ago
Oooh so sorry!!!!! Awful stuff.

To ID later... Spray paint pink after the herbicide dries? Take pics? Put a little sign for yourself back there, to remind? Have someone else do it? Pull sprouts more often?

Not everything in nature makes sense, but this cruel trick of still poisonous dead leaves and vines is especially perplexing to me.

The only acceptable disposal for me, this yard, is plastic bag sent to landfill. We recycle and compost, but that's not an option for something that has the potential to make me so sick for an unknown amount of time past its' death.

Do not burn, urishiol can become airborne this way.
catbird
Original Author
11 years ago
I pull up thousands of PI seedlings every year, but there are always a few that hide in the middle of something else or are in an area I just don't get to. May have to try your suggestion and carry a can of spray paint with me when I spray Roundup. Problem with that is I often don't realize I'll be finding PI till I'm out there. Then I don't get around to getting anything to mark it with. Oh, well. . . .

You're right about burning the stuff. Even a really hot, humid day can vaporize the urishiol. My brother inhaled some years ago and wound up in the hospital with PI in his lungs. Not a good situation.
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Those are all poison ivy. And big healthy established vines by the look of those blooms! What a job! If it were me, i'd don heavy duty protective gear in 2-3 layers(preferably an outer layer you can toss afterwards), and start cutting away as much as i could while it's dormant and fairly easy to work around. That won't kill it- but when it reprouts at the ground where you cut it off you can hit that with roundup and not damage other stuff. If someone in your family is more resistant to the oils, let them tackle the job. When you're cutting big vines especially, do it slowly so it doesn't splash/squirt sap around. Probably a good idea to wipe down your pruners as they get wet, too. Not sure how 'juicy' it'll be this time of year- i know at other times, the big vines are pretty sappy. It's going to be awfully hard to spray it thoroughly and not get anything else if you don't trim some of it down. You're taking some of the plant's system and weakening it some by trimming. Plus, it takes more spray if you leave it as it is than if you trim. Best of luck! As others have said- be very careful, and wash with technu really well afterwards. If you do end up with a rash, zanafel works pretty well at reducing the time you have it (it's expensive, though). There are a couple of prescription creams that will help tremendously in drying it up as well, and they aren't commonly known. The steroids and shots do work, but i don't like dealing with either one. The dormant vines can still give you a whopper of a rash, and the sap is the worst. If it were me, and this rental had it before you moved in, i'd ask the landlord if they'd knock off a little rent or pay for the weed killers for you. It's a nasty job, and you should get some compensation.
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SusanDee
11 years ago
Additional Reminder to Self: Burning poison ivy in clearing brush, etc. is also a bad idea because breathing the smoke can cause poison ivy in the lungs. Happened to someone I know. She lived through it---but only just.
outsideplaying_gw
11 years ago
So sorry, catbird. I'm catching up, so you're probably healed by now, but I've been caught by this mistake once myself when we first moved to the country. Didn't know what I had grabbed and let fall across my arm. Fortunately I don't have as bad a reaction as DH does. He 'forgets' he has made contact and it's on his gloves, the tractor steering wheel, etc. And then he's got it on his arms and ankles. There's some good stuff you can get from the dermatologist or a doc, I think it's called Clobetisol, but my spelling may be off, that really is a wonder drug. It's a gel and really helps heal.

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