poison ivy must die

For the first time ever I have poison ivy growing along my fence (150ft. long) and sproting in my flower beds. I have been pulling the ones in the beds by hand but does anyone know of a weed killer that will work on the ivy. I don't care if it kills the grass along the fence, I just want the poison ivy gone. I was told not to weed wack it as it will cause it to spread even more from the tiny bits being scattered around and taking root. Gil.

Regular strength BrushBGon will work quite fine.

Here's what I do that works quite well. I buy those elcheapo tarps at WalMart. I spread them out on the ground. I pull the poison ivy down and spread it out on the tarps. That's when I begin painting it (don't spray it) with the regular strength BrushBGon. Don't use concentrated BrushBGon as it works too fast. Concentrates actually are some sort of a marketing ploy in my opinion because they kill off all the herbaceous growth above ground and maybe a little of the roots but they just work too darn fast and don't seem to get all the roots. This is not good as any root down there can come back to haunt you. You want the chemical to be able to work its way all the way down to the further most roots to kill it all so do go with the regular strength BrushBGon. You can reapply the BurshBGon after about 5 days. You should start noticing that the plant is not looking too great in about 10 days. Leave it where it is for a total of about 2 weeks. Now go ahead and cut off the vine, bag it, and throw it out with you regular trash. You can also now dig up the stump and toss that out too. Don't burn poison ivy. Sorry about how I am about to type but NEVER burn poison ivy.

I noticed your poison ivy was on a fence. It should be perfectly fine to paint it right on the fence but maybe you could get a tarp and place it under the area you will be painting to avoid drips.

When applying BrushBGon, wait until your day time temps are going to be consistently above 60F but below 84F for a week straight. Applying these types of chemicals below temps of 60 isn't the greatest as the plant goes dormant and doesn't "suck" down the little love potion you want it to intake. Applying above the range isn't the greatest either as the plant shuts down at higher temps to conserve energy. Basically, you need to apply BrushBGon when the temps are as I mentioned or you'll just be wasting chemicals and the plant won't die off. It is also best to apply around noon when the plant will be photosynthesizing its little heart out.

Gil, this will work. If you've been using chemicals inconsistently with the labeling, it can be very frustrating when they don't work. I'm a pro at using chemcials improperly. We're all guilty of this so don't feel bad.

Oh dear, I have to disagree with the statement that concentrate BrushBGon is a marketing ploy and kills too quickly without getting the roots. There is nothing in the product chemical wise that is a contact killer. Used as directed, it works fine and will kill the roots. One on the most common problems is improper dose and improper application. The best way to kill woodies is to cut as Equil explains (and as close to the ground as possible) and then brush the stump(s) with the chemical. You must do this within a minute or two of application to be most effective. Dribbling the chemical down into the root collar is standard practice for woody plant killing. As for reapplying, it takes more than 5 days for the chemical to be absorbed into the root system so any sooner than a 2 weeks is over application, not necessary, and a waste of money.
As Equil explains the warmer temps are good but over 80ish degrees the primary active ingredient in the product becomes very volatile and airborne. This is a factor for foliar application and can result in injury to non target plants and the applicator.
Please read the label and call the 800 number with any questions. They can and will advise for your particular situation.

Hola Caron! Missed you oh wondrous weed woman.

Two ways I guess, painting the leaves with regular strength BrushBGon.

Or, as you mentioned, cutting the vine close to the base and painting the stump with concentrated BrushBGon.

I generally go for the painting of the leaves with the regular strength first so that if the plant is a mutant and goes on to live to mock me, I still have a second plan of attack in my bag of tricks.

If I decide to go with the concentrated BrushBGon painted directly on the stump, I only cut the stump down to about 12" so that if it suckers back up, I can come in and take another swipe of 6' off the stump and reapply the nuker type concentrated BrushBGon.

Say, full strength Garlon3 RTU would work on a poison ivy stump great too but that's sort of hard to get one's hands on.

"if the plant is a mutant and goes on to live to mock me"
Yep, story of my life!!!

Yes, it is easier to cut higher-saves the back and also does give a bunch more for reapplication if becomes necessary.

Yes, higher is better. Much more to trip over that way. I mean if those stumps are too low to the ground you might stumble a little bit but running into a 12 inch stump almost insures one will lose their balance and do a face plant. At least that's the way it works for me!

eew, face plant into poison ivy! aaargh!

I've got an ongoing battle with extremely well established poison ivy in the "fence row" of trees along the back of our yard. The thing that keeps me going is the notion that if I can ever kill it all, then I can start planting "woodland garden" goodies back there!

I never (knock on wood) did a face plant into poison ivy. Many times I went down, but never in that. I'd be a walking oozing blister if that stuff got all over me. Even Tecnu couldn't save me from that type of a close encounter.

You can get the ivy. If one method doesn't work for you, try another. Patience pays.

Thank you both for all the info. It sounds like I got my work cut out for me for awhile. Gil.