| How to get rid of poison ivy
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How to identify horrible plant
To identify poison ivy, it is most helpful to look at pictures of poison ivy plants. These pictures demonstrate a lot of things you should look for to help you identify and avoid poison ivy, including:
* Three leaflets (\'leaves of three let it be\')
* The middle leaflet has a longer stalk (petiole) than the other two
* Leaflets are fatter near their base
* Elliptical leaflets with slight lobes
* Leaflets are all about the same size
* No thorns along the stem
* Clusters of green or white berries may be present
* Aerial roots may be visible on the stem
Hazardous problems
Poison ivy, and its pestilent friends poison oak and poison sumac, can cause horrible rashes for those unfortunate enough to be allergic to these plants. Urushiol is the oil in these poisonous plants that causes the allergic reaction and its attendant itching, burning, weeping, and cracking of the skin. If you get a poison ivy rash, this article will tell you how to get rid of the reaction, without having to wait 2-3 weeks for the skin to naturally overcome it. Completely getting rid of your poison ivy rash with the method described in this article will take only a few days, which beats the heck out of a few weeks.
Immediate process
As soon as you think you may have been exposed to poison ivy, wash anything and everything that may have touched the plant. This includes your hair, your body, your clothing, your pets, and any equipment that touched or could have touched the plant. Wash your clothing separately from other clothing or materials not exposed to the plant. If you think the poison ivy may have touched your hands, or if you\'ve been handling exposed materials with your bare hands, be sure to scrub thoroughly between your fingers and beneath your fingernails.
If you\'re camping, or spending a long period of time outdoors, clean all of your equipment with fresh water and soap. In addition to soapy water, use a solvent like rubbing alcohol (isopropyl alcohol) to help separate the urushiol oil from your skin and equipment. Washing thoroughly will remove some of the urushiol before it can further contaminate you or your things, and may help to reduce your oncoming poison ivy rash.
Get rid of poison ivy
Some options to consider to get rid of poison ivy include:
· Call a professional landscaper to remove the poison ivy plants, especially if you have a lot of poison ivy in your yard.
· Spray the poison ivy plants with an herbicide, such as Roundup or Ortho Poison Ivy Killer, keeping in mind that they can also kill surrounding plants too.
· Manually remove the poison ivy plants, including the roots.
· Repeat spraying or manually removing the poison ivy plants as they grow back.
Few other steps to get rid of poison ivy
Hire a herd of goats to eat the poison plants in your garden. Goats are voracious consumers of poison oak and ivy. Nurseries or the agricultural extension office can point you in the direction of goats for hire. (Note: Even if you use this method, you will still have to dig out the roots.)
Use a glyphosphate-based herbicide to kill the plants. Glyphosphate is a nonselective herbicide and will kill any plant it comes in contact with. Keep it away from your landscape plants. Herbicide works best on poison oak that has already formed berries.
How to get rid of poison ivy >
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