How to Kill Poison IVY/Oak ?

I Need Best Get Rid Method for Poison IVY/Oak.
Any suggestions PLEASE!

Thanks Lottie

Are you talking about the three-leaved vine type, or do you have more than one kind?

How much of it do you have (1-2 plants, a large patch, scattered patches, all-over-the-place)?

How long has it been there (just this year, several years, forever)?

What else is growing there? Is it in your garden, surrounding woods? In other words, is it growing among plants you want to keep, or a new area you're clearing?

We have been pretty successful in at least controlling it from encroaching from the surrounding woods using Round-Up, in a spray bottle. It may take several applications, but it kills the part you see growing at least. If it's been there a while, it probably has an underground root system that is pretty hard to track down and kill.

We had a single vine in one area that we kept killing back each year, but each year it came back, usually stronger than before. We finally managed to (very carefully!!!) dig out the very long root and get rid of it for good. But we still get a few shoots on the other side of our yard each year that we kill back.

You can just hoe it down and dispose of it in a sturdy plastic bag, but it seems to come back again quicker than with the RU. If it's growing up a tree, just cut it completely at the bottom of the tree. The rest up the tree will die.

Whatever you do, be sure to protect yourself!!! NO kids or pets around while you're doing it! Wear sturdy long pants and long-sleeved heavy shirt, and heavy duty rubber gloves. Use hoe or rake, or whatever long handled tool works, when at all possible. Work quickly, maybe a little at a time, for only ~ 15-30 minutes at a time.

Then, very important, go in and shower well, hair too, before any possible plant juice has time to irritate your skin and cause rash.

Be sure to wash all your tools with soap and water to remove the plant sap. Don't touch the tools with your bare hands while you're doing this. Use the hose as much as possible, pointed away from you and other plants, etc. Don't let kids help with this, or just stand around and observe either.

CAUTION!!! If you know that you have a higher than normal allergic reaction to poison ivy/oak, don't do this yourself, or be around someone who is doing it!!! Disturbing the plant in this manner can cause the plant juices to float in the air.

DO NOT burn the vines! The smoke is filled with the irritant.

I have dealt with poison ivy/oak all my fairly long life. I do get rash if I touch it unnoticed, or don't shower well after a walk in the woods. But I don't experience the swelling that some people do.

Be sure to check each year in case you missed part of it and it's trying to come back.

Good luck, and post back, please. I know what a problem this can be. But it's so nice once you're rid of it!!!!

Excellent advice, JudithI. Cold not have said it better. Here's a couple of tricks a landscaper friend taught me about Round-Up:

Add a small amount of dish soap to the solution. This increases its surface tension thus allowing it to stick to the leaves better.

If the vile weed is growing in an area where spraying is impossible, paint it on with a cheap brush. It's laborious work, but it does the trick

You can also put a cloth garden glove over a chemical impermeable pair of gloves, using the cloth glove as a sponge/applicator. You have to be really careful on what kind of gloves you use, though, and make sure they're in good condition with no pinholes or defects.


This link refers to pesticide application, but it would apply to herbicide application, too, I'd think. http://www.ext.nodak.edu/extnews/pestqtrly/pq16-1e.htm

From that link:

Type of material (for gloves): This has everything to do with what chemicals the gloves are resistant to. Select the wrong material and the glove may fall apart on your hand or the chemical may pass right through as if no gloves were worn. There is a wide variety of materials for pesticide gloves: Barrier Laminate, Butyl Rubber >14 mils, Nitrile Rubber >14 mils, Neoprene Rubber >14mils, Natural Rubber >14mils, Polyethylene, Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) >14mils, Viton >14mils.

I rather like the paintbrush idea...Maybe some of those cheap foam ones you can get for quick touch-up's.

Hi Lottie!

Have we scared you to death yet? Nightmares about poison ivy Kudzu taking over the world?

Sorry! It's not a huge deal usually, as long as you know your own tolerance level for the irritant. Some people do have life-threatening allergies to it, so I just wanted you to be aware of potential problems.

Have you had experience/encounters with it before? If so, you will know better what to expect in your own case.

It can be removed. It's just stubborn, especially because of the underground root if it's already established.

Please post back!

Judith

I finally dug out a deep poison ivy vine root beneath our sycamore last fall. I did like you said and showered right away, and I never did get it. I have not ever gotten it, actually. I sure don't want to push my luck, though!

Have any of you eaten these plants as a means of building up immunity to its toxins? I've read about it, but never - ever! - been brave enough to try.

I've never heard of that!!!!!

I would be afraid I would get an internal reaction. I think I've heard of people having it internally somehow. It wasn't a good experience. But you hear all these rumors and old lore. You never know.

How about you try it first, and let me know how it works out, so to speak!!!!! :)

Judith

Nahhh, y'all can be my guinea pigs. Howie (my DH) read about it in Stalking the Wild Asparagus by Euell Gibbons. I just remembered posting about that book way back in 2001 when I first joined here: http://davesgarden.com/t/71349/

I've typed an excerpt for y'all here and I'll post it to that thread as well.

"When I came East, I kept hearing of this method of immunization, and finally I met a man who practiced it. This man not only ate poison ivy himself, but he gave it to his wife and five children each spring. None of them appeared to have suffered any ill effect and all of them claimed to be untroubled by poison ivy, although a great deal of this dread vine grew new their house and they were exposed almost daily.

"He told me his dosage and, since I am a rash experimenter, I tried it. It seems one must start on this course when the first tiny leaflets appear in the spring. Three of these first, tiny newly opened leaflets are simply pulled off, chewed and swallowed. The next day, one takes three more and continues this daily dose for three weeks. Of course, the leaves are growing all this time, so the dosage is actually increasing. By the third week, according to this discipline, one should be able to eat three full-sized leaflets without suffering any harm.

"Does it work? Well, it seems to work perfectly on me, so far. I have religiously followed this rite for the last two years, and I haven't once been bothered by poison ivy. I have become almost contemptuous of the plant, pulling it from flower beds and off shade trees with my bare hands, with no more precaution than merely washing my hands afterward. However, the effects of poison ivy vary so from person to person that I don't feel this remedy can safely be recommended for use until further experiments are made. "

(excerpt from pp. 284-85)

He goes on to talk about extracts and distilled medicines containing poison ivy. It's fascinating, but I'm not too keen on trying it even if I've not ever gotten a rash!

Well, if Euell wouldn't eat it, I'm sure not going to!!!!!

Maybe we can get "Mikey" to eat it, "he'll eat anything!"

But Euell did eat it, for two years! He just couldn't recommend it without qualification, LOL...

Wonder what happened to Ms Critterkeeper?

No word yet on her reaction!

Judith

Judith You have mail..Thanks everyone.MsCritterkeeper

There is a wonderful product which is the only remedy for actually curing poison ivy once you are infected. It is called "Zanfel" and it deactivates the Urushiol oil from under your skin. It is very expensive ($32 for a 1 oz tube) but it works. There are other soaps which are effective if used within the first hour or so. There are also creams you can apply which give some prophylatic protection. Zanfel works at any stage and effectively relieves the itch. As far as killing poison ivy I find that Ortho Poison Ivy & Brush killer works better than Roundup. I find that poison oak is fairly easy to pull out of the ground with a mattock as the roots are not particulary stubborn. The hard part is not getting infected. It is best to do any physical removal in the winter when the plant is dormant. Wash your face and hands every hour and use disposable latex gloves under regular gloves and change hourly.

I second that about Zanfel. My best friend bought this for her husband and they were amazed at how fast it worked. The product binds to the urishoil and removes it from the skin. I wanted to buy some for my mom, but we didn't have enough for its spendy pricetag. That was last summer, and it was $40. Hope it keeps getting more popular and the price drops so more folks can get it.