Trillium,

Oh boy what a situation. Poor you with the poison ivy and wasp sting.

I agree that you shouldn't ingest any vegetables or fruits that are grown amid poison ivy. The poison is spread by microscopic needles and will contaminate anything that brushes against it. Hate to think what could happen if you ingested this irritant.

With such widespread growth, perhaps this is not a job you can tackle on your own but will need the assistance of professionals.

Don't try burning any ivy debris because you will simply convert the poison into a gas form and you can imagine what that will do to your lungs.

Several studies have shown that either the glyphosphate in Roundup, or the surfactant in it that allows it to penetrate and kill the plant, is highly lethal to amphibians, and and to earthworms. Other studies have shown that it interfers with hormones and damages human placental cells, and possibly the placental cells of other mammals (you wouldn't want to spray it anywhere near where farm animals graze). It can inhibit mycorrhizal fungi (a bacteria that helps plants take up vital nutrients), and there are reports it can kill beneficial insects like parasitic wasps and lacewings.

I have not read anything about using it around septic beds, but given that it is implicated in harming or inhibiting many organisins, including bacteria, I'd not recommend using it there. Ditto for your well area.

I would suggest you rethink your desire to get rid of the clover too. Clover has been rebranded a weed only since the developement of broad leaf weed killers. Prior to that it was a very much desired addition to lawns because of it's ability to remain green throughout the heat and drought of summer. It also fixes nitrogen, allowing a healthier grass growth, which in turn discouraged other weeds.

I've never read anything about poison ivy and veggies. Even if the veggies can't take up the urushiol, it can't be good to garden in poison ivy :-)

Poison ivy is a pain in the a**!!!!! Most people don't have a reaction to it the first time they come into contact with it, so your experience is normal. It takes one or two exposures to become sensitized to it first. Lots of people also report that dogs don't have problems with it, but they can get the oils on their fur which then become a problem for you when you pat the dog. You can keep it to a minimum if you are dilligent about pulling it up as soon as you see it. Since you just moved, you might have a lot right now. You can buy cheap gardening gloves at a dollar store and latex gloves at a drug store. Use both! Put your feet into a couple of trash bags (might want to use two or three layers if they're thin), and tape them shut as high as they'll go and you're fairly well (and cheaply) protected form the oil. Throw out the gloves and trash bags inside another trash bag. You can also pick up some cheap clothing at a local thrift shop - wear it while removing it and them throw it away. By removing what you can see, you'll cause a growth spurt from any remailing stuff, but if you repeat the process every week or two for this summer, you'll have gotten rid of most of it without having had to resort to Roundup. Check nearby trees and undergrowth for old vines - they're hairy. If they're too big or high to remove easily, just hack through them and remove what you can - the rest of the higher up stuff will die and be out of the way so you won't need to worry about it.

It sounds like a great place though! You're so lucky to have that much room! A lot of work to bring it into shape, but that's half the fun :-)

BP

We are also surrounded by poison ivy. Our dogs walk/play through it all the time. I have never gotten it from the dogs and neither has anyone else and we pet the dogs all the time.

I pick berries in the bush, just wash my clothes when I come back. No problem. Don't worry about having to throw out your clothes like 'BP' wants you to. Washing your clothes in a regular cycle works fine.

If I think I have touched the poison ivy, I wash that area well with soap and water and never get it then. The oil is washable and it is the oil on your skin that will cause you to break out in blisters.

BTW, mangos are related to poison ivy. So, if eating mangos, wash your face where any juice as dripped. My son didn't do so years ago and the next morning looked like he had poison ivy all over his face.

On the Roundup site in the internet, they list a Roundup that will kill poison ivy at...

http://www.scotts.com/smg/catalog/productCategorySubSelf.jsp?navAction=jump&itemId=cat50102&id=

Regular Roundup I would have no problem in putting it over my septic field or around the well. Roundup is nulified as it touches the soil. I like this article I found in the 'net' and if you look at the last sentence that is why I wouldn't have any quams about using it next to a well or the septic field...

Roundup is a non-selective herbicide used to kill unwanted grasses and weeds. It is available in professional strength liquid concentrate and professional dry concentrate formulations. When Roundup is sprayed on plant foliage, it is absorbed and then moved or translocated  throughout the plantÂs tissues. Once inside the plant, Glyphosate (the active ingredient in Roundup) inhibits the production of an enzyme, called EPSP synthase, which in turn prevents the plant from manufacturing certain aromatic amino acids essential for plant growth and life. Glyphosate interrupts the metabolic process in plants, so its effect may not be visible for about four days in annual plants and up to seven days in perennial plants. After application, the plant wilts and turns yellow, and then turns brown as the plant tissue deteriorates. At the same time, Glyphosate decomposes the plantÂs underground roots and rhizomes. Ultimately, the entire plant dies, is incapable of regenerating, and enriches the soil as it decomposes.
Tests have shown that Roundup, when used according to label directions, has no weed killing activity once in contact with the soil. Glyphosate will not move in or on the soil to affect non-target vegetation, and it does not move through the soil to enter other non-target plants by the root system. Glyphosate is only effective when it comes into contact with the green, growing parts of plants. Other tests have shown that Glyphosate binds tightly to most soil particles until it is degraded. This means that the likelihood of Roundup harming nearby plants is negligible, and there is an extremely low potential for Glyphosate to move into groundwater.

Brenda

Several studies have shown that either the glyphosphate in Roundup, or the surfactant in it that allows it to penetrate and kill the plant, is highly lethal to amphibians, and and to earthworms. Other studies have shown that it interfers with hormones and damages human placental cells, and possibly the placental cells of other mammals (you wouldn't want to spray it anywhere near where farm animals graze). It can inhibit mycorrhizal fungi (a bacteria that helps plants take up vital nutrients), and there are reports it can kill beneficial insects like parasitic wasps and lacewings.

I have not read anything about using it around septic beds, but given that it is implicated in harming or inhibiting many organisins, including bacteria, I'd not recommend using it there. Ditto for your well area.

I would suggest you rethink your desire to get rid of the clover too. Clover has been rebranded a weed only since the developement of broad leaf weed killers. Prior to that it was a very much desired addition to lawns because of it's ability to remain green throughout the heat and drought of summer. It also fixes nitrogen, allowing a healthier grass growth, which in turn discouraged other weeds.

I've never read anything about poison ivy and veggies. Even if the veggies can't take up the urushiol, it can't be good to garden in poison ivy :-)

Poison ivy is a pain in the a**!!!!! Most people don't have a reaction to it the first time they come into contact with it, so your experience is normal. It takes one or two exposures to become sensitized to it first. Lots of people also report that dogs don't have problems with it, but they can get the oils on their fur which then become a problem for you when you pat the dog. You can keep it to a minimum if you are dilligent about pulling it up as soon as you see it. Since you just moved, you might have a lot right now. You can buy cheap gardening gloves at a dollar store and latex gloves at a drug store. Use both! Put your feet into a couple of trash bags (might want to use two or three layers if they're thin), and tape them shut as high as they'll go and you're fairly well (and cheaply) protected form the oil. Throw out the gloves and trash bags inside another trash bag. You can also pick up some cheap clothing at a local thrift shop - wear it while removing it and them throw it away. By removing what you can see, you'll cause a growth spurt from any remailing stuff, but if you repeat the process every week or two for this summer, you'll have gotten rid of most of it without having had to resort to Roundup. Check nearby trees and undergrowth for old vines - they're hairy. If they're too big or high to remove easily, just hack through them and remove what you can - the rest of the higher up stuff will die and be out of the way so you won't need to worry about it.

It sounds like a great place though! You're so lucky to have that much room! A lot of work to bring it into shape, but that's half the fun :-)

BP

Why would Bonnie (BP) repeat her whole blurb at 14:41?? It was already done in the morning at 11:45.

And by the way, you can have a reaction to poison ivy the FIRST time you are in contact with it.

Brenda

valleyrimgirl - I have no idea why it did that. Hiccups occur at many places, and repeat posts are not an unheard of thing. I am not sure why you seem to have an issue with this or with what I said. Is there some reason you are upset with me? Trillium asked for advice. I gave her some, but she is under no obligation to follow any of it, and I believe she knows that. Many people disagree here on many points, and it is not usually a problem.

There is no one right or wrong reaction to poison ivy, or one right or wrong way to deal with it. People differ in their reactions and sensitivity to it. Some people can rip it out barehanded and some need to use extreme measures. Most people, but not all, require an initial exposure to any allergen in order to become sensitized to it. It's how the immune system works. While it is possible to have a reaction on first exposure, it is not common and most people who believe this to be the case have been unknowingly exposed previously and just escaped the reaction. Some people never react to it at all. Everyone is different.

People also have differences in their comfort levels for pesticide use. I almost never recommend it's use for cosmetic or residential properties, and when someone asks if it is safe to use, I will point out that there is controversy. No pesticide is 100% safe, nor are they 100% lethal or toxic. It is up to the individual to decide if they are willing to use a given product, but in order to make that decision they need to look at both sides of the issues.

BP

Know original post is old but since problem will remain current here is more recent article addressing Roundup non-toxicity.

https://ask.extension.org/questions/210283

I am not allergic to poison ivy so I can rip it out by hand and not be fussed over it. I also do not have any on my place.

It was here when we bought the land but I covered it all with 4 layers of cardboard and a foot of compostable mulch (Leaves, grass clippings, dead stems from goldenrod...whatever I could get my hands on.) I topped that off with an inch or two of compost and soil then I went out and collected wild catnip seed and scattered it all over. (I had heard years ago that P.I. would not grow where catnip would grow) True or not I don'y know.

What I do know, is I no longer have P.I. on the property. Was it the smothering mulch? Probably. Does the catnip keep it at bay? Seems that way. Is catnip all I have now? Nope. I have planted the bed with red and black currents, perennial geraniums and a few ground covers to "hold" the space until whenever I get around to expanding the area. And yes...catnip is still there but it is easy to pull so I am not fussed. I will take it over P.I. any day