Leaves of Three VS. Me

No, I am not talking about reading your "tea" leaves. I am talking about the nasty little "leaves of three, let them be", poison ivy leaves.  Many of you have probably already encountered these little devilish leaves at some point in your life. But for those of you who have not, I want to share with you some pictures of the plant so you can learn to avoid it, some advice on what to do if you know you have come in contact and some products that could aid in your relief if you do come into contact with it.

For those of us who have encountered it, we are fully aware of the full effects of its' power.  You see, poison ivy, contains this oil, called Urushiol.  Urushiol is what causes the nonstop itching, blistery rash.  The trick to not coming in contact with it, is to learn to keep on the look out for it.  Poison Ivy is easily spread by birds, because they eat the berries off the plant and conveniently "poop" them out, throughout your yard.  Another important thing to remember is this plant can reseed itself through the berries dropping, being blown by the wind, or one of the fastest ways is by mowing over the plant while its producing berries.

To keep it from growing and spreading in your yard, is learning to detect it early.  Carefully removing it from its' roots (locating the places where it is growing, wearing old clothes that you can throw away afterwards, and keeping your skin covered). If you detect a large growth of poison ivy, i.e., growing up a tree, you should seriously consider calling in the experts (poison ivy horticulturalist, brush removal specialist).  Keep in mind calling such experts and specialists can get costly, most will charge you a consultation fee (usually $100) and then depending on how you decide to treat, it goes up from there.  There are some over the counter herbicide sprays you can use, but if you are like me, you want to keep away from such chemicals that can be harmful to your health and to the environment.  I did find this recipe to make your own "poison ivy killer spray", that is not made of herbicides:



Poison Ivy Vegetation Killer

• 1 cup salt
• 8 drops liquid detergent
• 1 gallon vinegar

Combine the salt and vinegar in a pan and heat to dissolve the salt. Cool the vinegar, add the detergent, and pour some of the liquid into a large spray bottle. Spray the vegetation. (You can also just pour the mixture onto the weeds.) Refill the spray bottle as necessary. Note that this formula will kill all the vegetation, so make sure that you are only spraying the plants you want to kill. If you need to use a lot of this spray, avoid spraying it near wells, as the salt can leach into your water supply. [Read more: http://www.care2.com/greenliving/vinegar-for-poison-ivy.html#ixzz2VXkYonMI]

I personally have not tried this more natural spray, but I plan on it.  Keep in mind, whatever method of spray you choose to use, all can be harmful to surrounding plants and vegetation.

Now as for what to do once you have come into contact with poison ivy.  First, if you are aware you have been exposed to it, rinse the affected area with cool water.  I recommend doing this after doing any gardening work, like I said, you never know, the baby sprouts of poison ivy can hide themselves easily under other plants.  Do not use warm water, as this can open the pores of your skin and allow the Urushiol oil to penetrate more.  After you have rinsed the area, follow with a soap wash, and rinse (Burt's Bees Poison Ivy Soap works best).  Any clothing that came into contact with the poison ivy, either throw away, or put straight into the washing machine (and wash and least two times). 

The products that I strongly urge you to purchase and keep stocked in your medicine closet are: Burt's Bees Poison Ivy Soap, All Terrain Poison Ivy/Oak Bar, and Herbs, Etc.'s Ivy Itch Releaf.  As someone who has had my fair share of poison ivy contact, I can attest that these products truly work and provide fast relief (this includes the time that I was even put on a steroid cream...these work better!).  The reason I think two of these products work so well, is because they contain: Jewelweed, a well-known natural remedy to poison ivy/oak and other skin irritations. Herbs, Etc. Ivy Itch Releaf has always been my saving grace, when I have come in contact with poison ivy. (You can find these products direct from their websites, or at most health food stores).

You can also try to find a plant of Jewelweed and keep it in your garden.  After contact with poison ivy, you can take a part of Jewelweed, slice the stem and rub its' oil over the affected area.

Lastly, keep in mind, if you are one of the people who think you are immune to poison ivy, think again.  People's immunities to such things, can change as they age, so do not ever assume you are immune.  Stay safe, and remember the wise old rule, "leaves of three, let them be".

***(All of the photos of poison ivy were taken by me.  The smaller samples were baby sprouts that I discovered recently in my garden boxes.  The larger sample growing up the tree is where the main source lives, near our property.)***