It is estimated that almost 85% of people have some type of allergic reaction to poison ivy. Poison ivy contains a clear liquid called urushiol that is found in all parts of the plant. The urushiol is responsible for the itchy, blistering reaction that poison ivy is famous for. Some people have mild reactions and others are so sensitive that they will catch it without even touching it.
What ever your situation, there are ways of keeping this nasty vine under control. Before we discuss what kills poison ivy, let’s talk about how to identify it.
What Does Poison Ivy Look Like?
Poison Ivy Vine On Tree
Poison ivy can take on slightly different appearances. You’ll notice on the picture above that the leaves are slightly scalloped. On the picture below, the leaves appear to have smoother edges.
These Poison Ivy Leaves Have Smooth Edges
Leaves grow in clusters of three. The topmost leaf has a small stem, but the two adjacent leaves below it do not. Poison ivy leaves tend to have a glossy appearance, but its not a rule. Color can range from green to reddish. They can get quite red in the fall.
These Young Leaves Have a Reddish Tone
They grow on a vine, as a small bush or as small plant. They can trail up a tree on a hairy vine or blend in with other plants on the ground. Sometimes it can be tricky to identify these troublesome plants until its too late. They can produce a translucent white or cream colored berry that remains on the plant throughout winter and spring. Its best to follow the old saying:
Leaves of three, let them be.
Berries of white, run in fright.
This Is Not Poison Ivy. Notice The 5 Leaves? It’s Virginia Creeper.
Okay, now that we know how to identify it, let’s get down to business. What kills poison ivy?
How to Get Rid of Poison Ivy
Go gaga for goats!
Its a well known fact that goats will eat nearly anything. Goats will happily clear out patches of poison ivy without any itchy side effects. Don’t have a goat? Drinking goat’s milk is said to dramatically reduce your reaction to poison ivy. Science has proven that the urushiol contained in the plant does not transfer to the milk so there is no risk of catching poison ivy from drinking the milk. I have found no concrete evidence that goat’s milk will help your allergy, but many, many people swear it helps! Likewise, it is said that soap made from goat’s milk helps relieve itchy rashes.
Goats? Come On, Give Me Some Advice I Can Really Use!
Goats are awesome, but I don’t know of any goat-rental services. If you’re going to tackle this problem yourself, the first thing you need to do is protect yourself. Once again, the poisonous urushiol in poison ivy is in every part of the plant. You will need to wear gloves, long pants, long sleeves, etc. Armor yourself as much as you feel necessary. Mike is highly sensitive to poison ivy so he is careful to cover his face with a mask and his eyes with goggles.
Mike, Armed For Battle
After tackling the ivy, be sure to wash your clothing right away. Wash your hands with soap in cool water. (Hot water opens your pores.) Shower with luke warm water. Wash your loppers or any other tools you used. The oils can remain active for over a year. Get ’em off.
Pulling poison ivy out by hand can prove difficult. They have a strong, long root system. The roots can be over a yard or two long. Pulling out the entire root is hard. You’ll find that this method is often only a temporary fix. They almost always grow back. That being said, if you are going to pull them out by hand, the best time to do it is winter or early spring while the oil production is low. This is also the best time to cut any large vines growing up trees.
Clipping a Poison Ivy Vine
The vines rely on the strong root system to keep them alive. If you cut them, anything above the cut will die.
After spring when your poison plant (hehe) has leafed out, you can spray the leaves with a systemic herbicide like Round-Up. These weed killers are absorbed through the leaves then enters the root system, killing the plant. Be careful to only spray the poison ivy leaves. You don’t want it absorbed into the leaves of plants that you want keep.
Many people think that by using it full strength, they are giving a heavier dose. This is not the case. Systemic herbicides are carried through the plant by the water in the mixture. If you don’t add water, it doesn’t work properly. Less poison is carried to the roots.
Don’t Want To Use Chemicals?
Not to worry! There are more natural alternatives for spraying leaves. Here is a simple recipe that you’ll love: Vinegar, salt and dish soap. That’s it!
Kill Weeds With 3 Simple Ingredients
Start with a gallon of white vinegar. The “average” vinegar is 5% acidic and will work just fine, but if you can find one that’s 10% or 20% your mixture will be more potent. Pour the vinegar into a pot and heat it over the stove. Add 1 cup of salt and stir until the salt dissolves. Let it cool, then add 2 tablespoons of liquid dish soap.
Vinegar, when diluted with a gallon of water makes a good fertilizer for acid-loving plants like azaleas, rhododendrons and blueberries. When mixed full strength with salt, it works very much like Round-Up. The dish soap helps the mixture to stick to the leaves.
Pour the mixture into a spray bottle. Set the sprayer to stream (not mist) to for better control. Once again, be careful where you spray because it will damage any leaf that it hits.
Be Patient
Spraying your plants with a systemic herbicide or the vinegar mixture will not work overnight. After its absorbed into the leaves it takes time before it destroys the root system. Give it 2 weeks, then spray the plant again if necessary. It may take more than one application to do the job. Poison ivy is a tough plant with strong roots.
Disposal
Dead vines of poison ivy can still contain potent amounts of oil for quite some time. Wear gloves and wash up after moving them. It is best to bury it or if you have woods behind your house, you can pile it up where no person or pets will come in contact with it.
Do Not Burn It!!
Even dead poison ivy can contain urushiol that can be released through burning. Inhaling the smoke can inflame your lungs, bronchial tubes and nasal passages. It can get into your eyes. Its nasty stuff. Burning poison ivy was the inspiration behind the creation of mustard gas that was used in WWI. Please, please, please do not burn your poison ivy.
Here is what Mike has to say about getting rid of poison ivy.
I won’t tell all the stories I’ve witnessed about poison ivy, like the kid in Boy Scouts that went big potty in the woods and wiped with the wrong leaves, etc. I had neighbors that cleared a section of their culvert and both ended up in the hospital. The stuff is worse than bad, Roundup doesn’t kill it by itself. You need “Ground Clear.” I mix up diesel, gas and naphtha and sprinkle it onto the plants. I don’t want to wait 2 weeks to see it die. I wipe exposed skin with mineral spirits and/or toluene or naphtha. Then I take a shower with dish soap..
Rhus Tox. or Rhus Toxicodendron or R. Toxicodenndron is a homeopathic compound of dessicated, killed poison ivy powder sold in little tablets that has been suggested for treatment of arthritis . It minimal empirical support for that, BUT i have tried it as a kind of innoculation for posion ivy (a la Pasteur style vaccination) with great results….historically very highly allergic and always got it over large parts of my body and always required steroids with even minor exposures… at.25, I tried Rhus Tox after consulting a country pharmacist… no break outs for almost 30 years as long as I: (a) I took a couple of tablets before I went near possible poison ivy and for a day or 2 after, and (b) took a shower within a few hours. Using a light alcohol rinse (dries up the oil) within a short time when I suspected I touched it also seems to help.
Homeopathy is nonsense. If it is diluted to standard homeopathic concentrations, then it does not work. Period. End of story. It’s basically just expensive water.
Taking a (lukewarm) shower shortly after exposure, on the other hand, is highly effective. I use dish soap, which is particularly good at dislodging the oil. I am extremely sensitive to poison ivy (I can almost get rashes from looking at it too long). I have fought a years-long battle with it while restarting an old farm, which puts me in contact several times per week during the growing season. After a bad outbreak (steroid shots, yay) that taught me to wise up, I haven’t had any big problems. I just make sure to minimize contact and shower shortly after tangling with the stuff. No psuedoscience required; just dish soap and common sense.
Homeopathy is not watered down science. It is where all medicine comes from. No need to be insulting when giving advice.
I find that Joy dishsoap works the best. Wash within 20 minutes of contact. In cold water. Be sure to dry well with paper towels. No problem. Using it on plants is great too. 1 tablespoon to 1 gallon water. Kills it every time.
You might be from the old school of thinking ( no disrespect intended, I’m in my 60’s) but joy does not have the “best” oil/grease cutting afar ya in it as other dis soaps and still to remain mild enough not to be too toxic. I’m sure you’ve heard this 1000 times or maybe not this is what they use a little ducklings to rescue them when they had big huge massive tankard oil spills in the middle of the oceans in the water rushed up onto the shores and shorelines in into the national forest killing wildlife. Conservational list used “John“ safely without getting into their eyes, to wash this oil off of the wildlife which saved many 1000’s wildlife lives. Also, in the automotive, painting and even blacktop industry Dawn has been found more effective than the previous more caustic cleaners. Not for for lacquer based paint latex based paint..
So where is I am not putting down your joy detergent I’m just giving her my opinion cook lunch or not in many industries Dawn has found to be most effective, hence with Poison oak poison ivy poison sumac etc. those oils would be more effectively removed perhaps by washing with Don initially and also to “kill the vines and roots with the vinegar/salt/Dawn detergent mixture. However one problem you still do have is when you have poison ivy growing under a fence onto your side of the property up through the ground, because your neighbor has massive bushes and vines of poison ivy growing on their side of the fence (that I mentioned 6 yrs ago) and finally this yr they have covered it up with wood paneling thinking that this is going to kill it, and now all that has done is smothered the top of their plants so now it has pushed the roots under the fence and it’s coming up on my side of the fence rampidly!!!! Looks like I’m going to need gallons and gallons of vinegar/ salt and dawn! Ugh!
Tempted to use more drastic measures? I’m in environmentalist yes I am but yes I am tempted!
None of those ducklings washed in Dawn mentioned that the Dawn was donated to be used in an advertising campaign. It was used because it was free, not because it was the best. Also, none of those misleading ads mentioned the too many to count rinsing that those ducklings got to ensure that not even a hint of the Dawn was left on a feather or skin. Kind of blows the claims of how safe or gentle it is.
Hand dishwashing liquids should not be used outdoors, unless there is a large oil spill. It gets into the soil where it kills enzymes which are essential to the life of various plants including trees. Now trees take a long time to die, but without the essential soil enzymes and such, the dying process has begun. 😪
You are literally reading/responding to an article on a homeopathic way to kill poison ivy and calling homeopathy “nonsense”………Here’s your sign…
All-natural ingredients does not equate to homeopathy, nor is homeopathy “where all medicine comes from.” It is a (n unfounded in scientific studies) practice of taking an ingredient ‘& diluting it with water hundreds of times. Oscillococcinum, the homeopathic “miracle flu medicine,” takes the liver of a Muscovy duck, liquifies it, then dilutes it with water enough times that if you were to fill the entire known universe with water and added one molecule of duck liver to it, it would be more concentrated than Oscillococcinum sugar pills. The dilution rate ensures that there is zero chance that any active ingredient is present in the sugar pills.
as a child, 2-10, i got poison ivy regularly and suffered a LOT. i took poison ivy ‘pills’, tasted like they were just sugar pills, but they were good so i ate the whole bottle – i know, i know – and for 45-50 years did not get any poison ivy despite pulling it out of yards and brushing up against it many times. maybe you say the homeopathic meds don’t work but it did for me. i started getting poison ivy again at 65 years old and it’s gone systemic a time or two. i’d sure like to have some of those pills
I have to laugh. No just respect intended but look up “Dr. pierces medicine” he was a doctor here in Buffalo New York that’s all the medicine for years over the world have a hospital here huge huge huge factory that took up three huge flocks in Buffalo New York, he became a congressman and senator, and a member of the house No just respect intended but look up “Dr. pierces medicine” he was a doctor here in Buffalo New York that’s all the medicine for years over the world have a hospital here huge huge huge factory that took up three huge blocks in Buffalo New York, he became a congressman and senator, and a member of the House of Representatives I believe he was born in the 1700s in all of this took place during that time there is still one building last year in Buffalo but yes he was a quack you can still buy some of his “pills“ on eBay! Sounds like something you might have taken. LOL most of his word for women for “female problems“ which seems to “cure“ PMS, better known today is premenstrual syndrome and other words come ask your wife pre-. Bitchy syndrome! LOL no it is a real thing it’s a hormonal thing but anyway people from all over the world women from all over the world were saying how they were magically cured! However they were quacks all over the world one other one in Buffalo here I can’t think of his name now but it’s amazing all of my family is in the medical profession and I have looked up and bought books and bought bottles of these pills, Just for their collections just for fun. If you look on eBay you just might be able to find some poison ivy pills! I’m serious! All the best to you
I can attest to the rhus tox homeopathic pills. Works!
@ Ihop
Homeopathy is the enemy of vaccination. Just like with any product, the way to make your product more successful is to make the competing product look weak. Next time you so blatantly attack someone or something, think about where your information comes from. Is it by any chance from big companies or organizations that have invested big into the competing products? If so, I would take that information with a huge grain of salt. Homeopathy has many success stories if you care to do your research. I myself have my own experience. Word of advice, don’t do your research on websites of companies that invested big in competing products (CDC is heavily invested in vaccinations).
Back on topic, I have my own experience with poison ivy. I have once dug up a small bush successfully with minimal outbreak on my lower arm. However, why I am here is because of the herbicide suggestion. I previously sprayed a poison ivy bush with round up. I came back a few days later and noticed it dying but not fast enough so I hit it again with the herbicide. One or two days later I noticed itchy spots all over the arm i used to get close to the plant to spray. I originally blamed my brother’s yard for the outbreak on my arm but quickly realized the outbreak came within a couple of hours and that couldn’t have been the source. I came to the conclusion it was from spraying the poison ivy in my own back yard. About two years later now and I had just hit my yard with turf builder which has herbicide in it. A few days after that, i do my regular yard work including getting down on my knees to pull out weeds from our flower bed. Another few days later and I’m itching all over with some heavier outbreaks in some spots while only scattered dots everywhere else. I did not notice any poison ivy in my yard recently but it could have still been there. Either that or I’ve become sensitive to other weeds as well.
Has anyone else had this experience, scattered outbreak after spraying poison ivy with herbicide and having no actual contact? I understand some people are so sensitive that they still break out even if they do not physically touch the plant, but to me it only happened after spraying the plant. Googling doesn’t yield any results with similar experiences.
when spraying you can get the rhu tox oil on your boots & tools or long spray arm which you can inadvertently touch later which transfers the oil & will give you the rash. It only takes a tiny amt of it!
I have tried different products. Best thing to do after an exposure to poison oak…..a long (10 minutes) Luke warm shower followed by shower with dish soap.
Sorry you feel that way. I too have erased my Sensitivity to PI via homeopathic remedy R. Tox. And before you say placebo effect… I cured Lyme’s from my 3 year old daughter using homeopathy. True story.
Can you pls list what remedies you used for Lyme? I have chronic lyme and have tried just about everything.
i believe you, rhus tox is also excellent to stop any crisis of shingles. i have tried it twice on my son and a friend and IT WORKS wihin 2 hours stops itching pain and it dries up
if someone does not believe in homeopathy .. too bad they are missing some very good inexpensive ways of treating a lot of problems, it also works on my animals
Ban roll on deodorant works well to stop the itch and dry up Poison Ivy.
Roll it on the affected area and let dry.
Ban roll on deodorant works well to stop the itch and dry up the blisters of Poison Ivy on you skin.
Roll on the affected area and let dry.
Just FYI. Regular Round-up is not very effective on Poison Ivy. There is a Round-up made specifically for poison ivy with an additive that cuts through the waxy surface, thereby letting the leaves absorb the poison. This is also the reason for putting dish soap in a home made version, to cut the plants waxy protection. I learned the hard way after several bouts with the same plants that didn’t want to DIE. When I bought our acreage, it was covered with the damn stuff, along with poison sumac (even worse)…
Please, How did you kill the Poison Ivy and not affect the other plants?
Spray only poison ivy leaves, in stream mode, notvspray mode, repeat in 2 wks. Vonegar salt detergent formula anove.
Dear Backyard Mike and my fellow plant/garden euthusiast and professionals:
While my husband was outside mowing our backyard, I decided to stroll towards my beautiful and favorite American Elm. We provide a wonderful swing for my grandchildren to enjoy from that tree.
What in the world did I see starting to grow up the side of my precious tree but the infamous Poison Ivy. Okay, I told my husband I would be right back because Backyard Mike had just sent out an email of how to naturally take it out. White Vinegar, Dawn and Salt-I have used this formular on getting rid of other pesky broadleaf weeds, so glad to know it will also take care of the Poison Ivy, Oak and Sumac. I almost lost my love of gardening a few years back when coming into contact with Poison Sumac, and had to be placed on steriods for several weeks. It was awful and my garden suffered for the rest of the season. But time heals on wounds! Be blessed and a blessing!
Dalerie,
I’m glad you got it under control.
Poison Ivy is not a grass but a bush. When I bought my home many years ago, about 300 feet of the lot rear was a combination of wild dogwood and poison ivy. After much trial and error the only fool proof fix was a leaf spray called Brush Killer. It takes about a week to kill the plant but you will see progress the next day. Hold off if you expect rain in 24 hours.
For the heavy hairy vine which has attached to a tree, don’t just cut the vine, remove a section. The lower section will eventually leaf out and can than be sprayed with Brush Killer.
Follow the safety rules others have mentioned and when you spray take it easy and try not to splash on yourself
.
The World Health Organization has named Glyphosate a probable human carcinogen…..https://sustainablepulse.com/2015/03/21/who-declares-that-glyphosate-herbicides-probably-cause-cancer/……California has listed it as a carcinogen……https://cen.acs.org/articles/95/i27/California-list-glyphosate-carcinogen.html…..Monsanto is currently in the middle of a lawsuit over Round-Up causing lymphoma……https://www.naturalnews.com/2018-07-16-robert-kennedy-jr-launches-first-lawsuit-of-thousands-against-monsanto-alleging-herbicide-roundup.html
I think this is sufficient cause for concern in any sane person.
Thank you for telling everyone this fact. I now have life ending multiple Myeloma due to landscaping using sprays-even according to instructions. On chemo for two years- no remission. This is not a non Hodgkin issue.
I’m sure using it once or once in a blue moon isn’t going to give you cancer or long term health problems.
HI Mike-
Good article on Poison Ivy. I have something like this growing on my Pfitzer. I need to do a little more sleuthing and see what it is for sure., Whatever it is, it has taken a good hold and grown throughout about 25 feet of the bush.
I also wanted to add a comment about comments! It seems no matter what arena one is in or scrutinizing there are people who want to speak on the popular and political evils, and they see them usually in a bad light and they feel they need to let every one else know.
In light of that type of comment I take most of what I read with a grain of salt-sometimes with a cup of salt!
But I appreciate your comments Mike because you have a level head and I never get the feeling that you are about to loose it! Maybe after you read some of the more choice comments you run outside and compete with your donkeys! But keep up the good humor and good info. I appreciate it and I like it.!
Thank you Henry I appreciate that!
I’ve had good luck with BRUSH-B-GON
Unless you attack the root system of the poison ivy plant you are only buying time. Cut the vine at the base of the tree ( if you like action ) but start digging at the base of the ivy vine and follow it. Probably for 20 ft or so. Dig and you will see.
Bingo!! To use a really small analogy it’s like killing an ant and thinking that you killed the entire ant farm that burrows itself sometimes 10 feet down to the ground with multiple colonies!
HI Mike, Your comments that there are “no goat rental services” to get rid of the poison ivy is not true! I googled that and found several, for example: http://rentagoat.com. they specifically mention that the goats are good for getting rid of poison ivy. (However, I suspect that the goats do not eat the roots, so the poison ivy may very well come back.). Perhaps your comment was picked up by some enterprising Americans…!
Malcom,
I should have known!
Poison Ivy and Roundup … I’m a crabby, old farmer with several acres devoted to commercial cut flower, vegetable and fruit production. Also raise and sell exotic or “fancy” exhibition poultry and waterfowl. While not certified organic, I avoid insecticides, herbicides and other toxins as much as possible. Still, there are times when big guns like Roundup are required. So, a little info from a very anti-Monsanto, anti-GMO curmudgeon:
Glyphosate (Roundup, Kleen Up, Agent Orange, etc.) has its origins in the humble Starfruit, properly Averrhoa carambola or just Carambola. Like many other plants, e.g., black walnuts or sunflowers, the fruit contains chemicals to prevent competition from other plants. Most inhibit germination (think Preen) while Starfruit can kill other plants post-germination. Glyphosate is nothing more or less than a concentrated chemical analog of Starfruit juice.
Without a long chemistry lesson, glyphosate blocks a specific enzyme in plants that tells roots to send water up to stems/leaves. Top wilts and dies, then roots starve and die. (Also why many tap-rooted / tuberous plants can survive one or two applications of glyphosate since they have food reserves sufficient to kick-start new top growth.) Bottom line, only green plants contain the enzyme glyphosate destroys. And since mammals, including humans, don’t have this enzyme, glyphosate is completely harmless in and of itself. THIS ISN’T TO SAY the “proprietary” inert ingredients might not cause cancer or other health problems with repeated exposure.
As sadly hilarious proof, last summer, my partner accidentally DRANK A QUART of Roundup Concentrate. (Long story but it tasted terrible, so he poured it over ice!) We went to ER. After 6 hours of doctors calling Monsanto, Poison Control Centers and a few university chemistry depts., he was released without any treatment at all. I don’t advocate using glyphosate as one’s beverage of choice, but…..
Moral of all this is — especially for poison ivy — limited use of chemicals can be a key part of insect, fungal or plant eradication programs. BUT FOLLOW LABEL INSTRUCTIONS, INCLUDING WARNINGS ABOUT WEARING PROTECTIVE GEAR, PREVENTING RUN-OFF INTO PONDS, STREAMS, etc. And as Mike said, never think “more is better.”
Apologies to all for posting a novella on this board. Just wanted to share some hard-won info. On t’other hand, if you don’t want to use chemicals, don’t!! Hand-pull, try boiling water or the vinegar-salt-soap solution which works wonders. I use that to eradicate cattails, yellow flag iris and other water loving invasives around my pond where I absolutely cannot use glyphosate. It takes longer and may require multiple applications, but it works. But be careful not to spray plants sensitive to sal and that salt(s) accumulate and can render soil sterile. (Remember myth of Romans salting soil around Carthage so no crops could be grown.)
Thank you for your informed comments.
I read an article about a yr ago about Monsanto buying up all the testing labs that were testing RoundUp with negative results so their info wouldnt get out to the public..These companys will do anything to protect the bottom line (profits)..
But how do we know that’s true?
I want to add that they mixture with vinegar, and use room salts please and Dawn works best, I say these things because table salt will kill the Earth itself and keep in mind it will kill the poison ivy it will also kill any of your perennials growing in the sprays way, I have my chickens free ranging so can’t risk chemicals, and if you will Google there are sites Miles probably said this too but where you see poison ivy, sumac, oak ect. There’s a remedy growing nearby from Jewel weed to plaintain that make a poultice and it’ll dry it up quickly, I was 50 before it affected me at all while my husband and son can’t even stare at it without misery in their future.
can you site that article so i can do my own research on the matter i take nothing at face value from random posts. it the equivalent of ” a friend of a my sister in law was told by her neighbor…” you get the idea
I live on the edge of a heavily wooded canyon (California) with lots of poison oak and vines climbing 80 feet up California Bay trees and Live Oaks. One vine is about 5 inches in diameter. I remove poison oak wearing a hazmat suit and gloves. I have used Roundup but have found the poison oak returns with much smaller leaves a year or 2 later. When I can I dig up the roots which can be quite extensive. Cutting climbing vines at the base kills everything above but can stimulate further growth from the rootstock. So if I cannot get at the roots of a vine located on a hillside I may leave the vine with poison oak leaves high above the ground but nothing growing at ground level.
Thank you very much for posting a safer alternative to Round Up and other environmentally harmful chemicals. As a beekeeper, I am very concerned about the liberal and extensive use of chemicals in our environment and their harm to our pollinators and other living things. I know ranchers that spray vast amounts of acreage with Round Up to kill the invasive and non-native star thistle. While my bees can make excellent honey out of star thistle, it does need to be eradicated, but we have to come up with healthier solutions. I am looking forward to trying out your vinegar mix recipe on some poison oak and star thistle this week.
Wow, monsanto paid trolls are everywhere spreading their disinformation. The glyphosate in roundup is processed in such a way that it is actually 1000 times more potent than glyphosate by itself. Glypgosate was developed to clean the minerals out of boilers originally, so guess what it does to your gut? Yes it’s a proven carcinogen and yes there is hard science about the health effects of roundup, and it would have been banned in recent years if not for corrupt political interests
Mike,your site is very helpful. I never would have learned about the Amish, how they use boiling water to eradicate Poison Ivy. It does work well because it is the roots that have to be killed. Followed up with the vinegar salt soap mix. Think it is the best way to go. Thank you
I am interested in finding out how to get rid of the dead poison ivy vines. When is it safe? I don’t plan to burn it, but I want to put it in a plastic lawn and leaf bag and send it to the dump. I don’t have a woods in back of my house or a goat. Hopefully, the city will take it away in the garbage truck.
I think that the only thing that kills bermuda grass is Agent Orange. It is hard to believe that people actually plant it on purpose. It is very invasive and nothing I have tried gets rid of it for good. I am doing raised beds for the garden and strawberries so that it will not invade. Pulling it by hand is not effective. Even if you think you have gotten all the roots, you have not. The slightest bit of root will eventually come up through weed barrier and mulch.
Annamay,
I won’t touch poison ivy until it has been dead for a year unless I am completely covered then immediately wash up with fels napa soap. (sp)
Use hamburger grease or any grease while it’s still hot/warm pour it on the poison ivy and it will kill it!
Nooooo maybe the top! No roots have you been reading?
I have never had poison ivy and never want it. That being said Mom a 71 year old lady was working in her yard this past week and came down with it. I went over and found 1 vine coming up under the rhododendron bush. (I think Mom pulled out the rest and that is how she got the rash now. This is going to be a major problem this fall for clean up. Blower and rack and leaves.
Is there anything I can spray (and nasty chemicals are ok with me) under the bushes that will kill any poison ivy that may come back i=or still there but not the rhododendron or azaleas?
Like I said I never had it and do not want it and my poor 71 year old Mom can not keep getting it..
Stefanie,
You really can’t spray to prevent it, but you can spray it as soon as you see it with a general weed spray like roundup or glyphosate. Just don’t spray the plants or the plant stems. Be sure to get to it before it can crawl up into the plants. It’s actually very easy to control this way as long as you get it before it has a chance to spread all over.
Hi. So glad to see the natural remedy for ridding poison ivy. Glycophosphate is in Roundup and possibly other herbicides. It causes cancer and one scientific study said it causes effects in children that mimic autism. Furthermore I paid someone to spray the leaves and hand pull it and it did not work. I am going to try the dishwashing liquid vinegar salt combination you suggested. I am so grateful for a natural remedy I can use that will not poison my yard!
So pleased at this non-toxic poison ivy killer recipe. I made it, used it and within a few hours the leaves had shriveled and started to turn black. Now I don’t have to worry about nasty chemicals around my kids and dogs while treating the poison ivy. Many thanks!
I have read that it is a law in California (don’t know if it is in effect yet) that roundup has to have a warning label on it that it might cause cancer. This is a state that won;t allow labeling of GMO food! Go figure…
Thanks for vinegar recipe. Sometime I also use this solution for dandelion. You may also boil the vinegar to create the acetic acid to be concentrated as this will inevitably create a potent killer. Thanks so much! -Ann
Mike again you have given us some awesome advice. Like you said I can’t stress enough how important it is that YOU ABSOLUTELY DO NOT BURN IT. If you come in contact with the vine my advice If you are like Mike and myself which I can look at it and get it. But if you know you have touched it go straight to the shower. Take a shower in as cold of water as you can’t possibly stand it. Do not use any type of cloth when you 1st start showering just good soap and water after your 1st rinse then go to luke warm water and a cloth and be gentle. As far As Burning it all I can say is OPOUN REALIZING YOU HAVE INHALED THE SMOKE PLEASE GO TO THE DOCTOR WITHOUT HESITATION. I made the mistake at 12 years old it was almost fatal . Thank You Mike for writing about the small things that so many take for granted.
Ed, you’re welcome, thanks for your kind words.
I don’t know if anyone has mentioned Tecnu outdoor skin cleanser. It removes the urishol which is what gives the poison ivy rash.You use it within 8 hours of exposure for prevention. You can wash your clothes and tools with it also. Anything that comes in contact with the urishol needs washed.There’s another product that was a foam cleanser called Ivarest cleansing foam but I haven’t seen it lately… only their medicated cream. There are companies that sell gear for poison ivy removal and they have a hooded coverup and goggles. Goggles are very important especially if your eyes swell shut like mine did when I contracted Poison on my face. I would imagine it’s common knowledge that you can get it from clothing, tools and pets. You don’t have to touch it. Burning it is totally out of the question unless you want to go to the ER or send some other poor soul there.
I have tried all the soaps and stuff to get rid of the itches. Problem is, you have to use them within about one minute of poison ivy getting on you. And I never know until the itching starts the next day. So, to deal with the itching…hold the affected part under really hot water in the shower (or sink). And/or use a blow-dryer on it twice a day. That seems to stop the itching for 12 hours. That’s the only thing that’s ever worked for me.
And for spraying it…Poison Ivy spray may be even better than Round Up. I don’t pull it up or anything…it just dies where it is.
Wash with fels naptha soap follow with tree tree oil on any blisters or places it itches .problem solved 24-48 hrs.
Someone told me I have a poison ivy tree. Is there such a thing ?
Kenneth,
Not to my knowledge, poison ivy is a vine.
It could grow as a very thick vine on a tree trunk. The vibes can get thick.
I lived across the street from woods for 32 years; there was one tree that had a poison ivy vine up it that had branches that looked like the lower ones on the tree itself. It was right next to the road so I’m sure a lot of my neighbors contracted the rash.
I was advised that the detergent acts as a surfactant to break up the oils on the leaf surface. That lets the water and vinegar do their job better. For the same reason, detergent can be added to Roundup to better the penetration of the systemic poison/herbicide.
We did as you suggested in the video and cut the vines. We had some about 4 inches in diameter on the lot we are building on. Does it help to spray the lower cut end of the vine with Roundup or PI killer? Thanks for the help!
Amy,
Absolutely! You can apply some roundup to the cut vine if you like, but more importantly just spray any new growth as it appears. I’ve done this many times with a great deal of success. I’ve cleared massive poison ivy patches simply by using a very patient but persistent approach. Just don’t let any on the lower vine or the ground continue to grow. A light spray of round up is all it takes to get rid of it. But re-apply as needed throughout the growing season.
would epsom salt have a lesser effect than table salt if I use it in the recipe?
Jim,
Good question. I don’t use this recipe, somebody else wrote this article for us. Me? I use Glyphosate with great results.
I sure hope you don’t anymore. Have we learned there are cheaper and safer ways to deal with nature yet? One way to kill poison ivy is to smother it. I have drenched it with just vinegar, or rubbing alcohol, or hydrogen peroxide, or just Joy dish soap and water. Then covered it with a tarp, black plastic, or even cardboard, old tubs, totes that are solid, even an old air mattress. Leave it, it will die. If you have to remove it quickly, then spray it, cover with black plastic yard bags. Tie it down. Two days it wilts. Get in there all covered up like Mike says just in case, and cut it just a few inches from the ground. Then paint a mixture of vinegar and baking soda, make it thick, onto each stem. Keep doing it. It will die. Learned this from my Uncle Dave, who was a silly old farmer who burned a field of it and ended up in the hospital for two weeks. He went to every agro meeting and co-op to learn quickly how to handle it after that. It was his nemesis! This was back in the 60’s. Before Round up.
I save all of your emails in a folder for future reference. Well, I needed this for battling poison ivy and I liked the vinegar solution and it worked! I did apply a second application after two weeks. I’m not trying to figure out how to tackle wild grape vine. It has taken over two trees in my small wooded area behind my home. I’m wondering, will the vinegar solution work on grape vine too? The base of both plants look like small trees.
Gail,
My advice is to cut those grapes off at ground level and then you only have to treat new growth as it appears.
Please advise on how to get rid of morning glory vines. I have many of them every year trying to strangle my Irises along my driveway. Can these same remedies you have mentioned for poison ivy be used on the morning glory vines. It seems that I have less Irises every year. I need to divide the Irises but just never seem to get around to it. Some of the Irises have turned a white (not a pretty white) and I think is because they are very old and loss their color. Anyway, these morning glories pop up everywhere, on a fence and here and there around the vegetable garden. I am in Indiana, Zone 6.
Nancy,
Yes, these solutions will work for morning glory. You have to be diligent. Pull them out then treat as needed and stay on top of it. Treat them before they have a chance to spread or climb.
Camo yard pro in NC removed ours THANK GOODNESS
….before they finally got rid of ours we hired goats and where ever the goats pooped poison ivy grew weeks later…tried everything!
Great article and comments. Hadn’t heard of the natural remedies – I’ll be trying them. Here are a few tips no one mentioned that helped me a lot:
#1 Prevention: Ivy Block is a lotion you put on your skin before you go out. It makes an invisible barrier that protect the skin from Poison Ivy, Oak & Sumac. It helps if I apply a good coat around my wrists and my inner forearm where I am particularly sensitive. Even though I wear a long sleeved cotton shirt and garden gloves and long pants and socks, I have still gotten poison ivy in the forearm/wrist area (possibly I touched my wrist with a contaminated glove when putting gloves on & off?) Not every store has Ivy Block – I believe I saw it in Rite-Aid where I also found Tecnu, another good product for washing body & clothing. For for another great prevention tip when pulling or picking up poison ivy see the comment by Jan on Mar 19, 2014. This technique using a bread bag keeps the poison ivy from contaminating my gloves and arm/shirt sleeve. I’ve also used a plastic grocery bag with no holes with this technique also.
#2 Washing – You must use a product that will dissolve the poison oil and how soon you wash after exposure is the key. Soaps don’t do it – you need a detergent which will cut the oil and release it from sticking to your skin. Tecnu is a great product but I just use a cheap dish detergent at my sink and shower (by the way I never have soap scum in the shower or sink.) Rub the skin with the detergent for a full minute with cool/lukewarm water. Then rinse with running water thoroughly. This spring I got a mild case after I worked a long day weeding. Usually I only work a few hours before cleaning up. During that day I washed my hands a few times but I didn’t really wash my arms good until the evening when I was done for the day and showered. I believe too much time had elapsed from a possible morning exposure. Next time I will use my detergent to wash and rinse my arms real good at every bathroom break.
After the rash appears Tecnu can be very helpful – the sooner the better. As soon as I get an itchy spot I get out the Tecnu. Follow the washing directions on the bottle. First a 2 minute rub (actually count or time it) with cool or lukewarm running water to rinse. If it still itches do another 2 minute rub with Tecnu but use very warm water. If it feels good for awhile and then starts feeling itchy you may need to repeat
I believe I purchased every over the counter poison ivy product over the years and even did experimentation mapping several products on various spots of my rashes to find which worked best, My conclusion is that they were all a waste of money and did little to relieve the itch. If I didn’t catch it soon enough with the Tecnu wash, then the best thing I have found is an ice pack or ziplock bag of crushed ice applied to the area (wrapped with a towel if too cold). Also taking a Benadryl helps. I haven’t tried the hot pack and plants mentioned in some comments, but will be trying that in the future.
Thanks Jomama, great information!
Somewhere here, I seem to recall a comment reported to have been made by an Amish farmer that they use boiling water to kill the vine. Has no one else here tried this?
Somewhere here I recall a reported comment from an Amish man that they have found that the vine can be killed with the use of boiling water. Has no one else tried this?
will any of these methods work on stinging nettles?. they grow everywhere in our neighbourhood. I am always pulling them out of my flower beds and vegetable garden. I don’t want to use any thing toxic but I sure would like to get rid of them .once and for all.
Homeopathic Rhus Tox taken orally in the beginning of the season (200c or 1M) helps make you not susceptible to Poison Ivy and if you get it anyway you can take homeopathic Rhus Tox to make it heal faster. It also has the side benefit of helping arthritis that is better after moving around awhile. Great stuff, I use it all the time..
As a child was extremely allergic to poison ivy,manyvtimes having to visit ER for injections. I have accidentally discovered that Dawn dish soap original rubbed into my exposed skin prior to going outdoors to work and then washed off immediately upon completing my outdoor chores has worked. Apparently the oil can not penetrate the film of dawn on my skin. Have not had the rash or reaction in over 5:years. Still use heavy rubber gloves but am able to cut vines near ground and pull roots..
If anyone ever gets infected by poison ivy, here’s an inexpensive trick that really works to get rid of it quickly. I am severely allergic to poison ivy and have had to go to the hospital for a shot every time I got in it. Until a couple of years ago. I had gotten into it again and was about ready to go to the hospital as usual. I had occasion to visit a neighbor and a lady who was there told me to run a hot bath as hot as I could stand it, put a cup or two of Epsom salt in water, and sit in it for at least 15 minutes. I did that and it practically cured the poison ivy. I still had some reaction on my hands and forearms, but I just wet them and rubbed salt on them a few times (when they were itchy) and that was gone quickly too. It really does work!!!
I found the best home made weed killer on youtube, work,s like a charm. The day has to be free of rain and it will take 1-3 days for results but it works.
I take a large bag of water softener salt and 5 – 5 gallon buckets. I measure with a large plastic glass a full glass full of salt into each of the 5 buckets until the whole bag of water softener salt is gone, each bucket gets an equal amount of the salt.
I then fill the buckets with water. Then leave the buckets sit for at least 2-3 days to marinate, the salt evaporates into the water the longer you let the buckets sit.
Stir before putting mixture into your sprayer. Make sure to spray only what you want to get rid of because this will kill everything.
Sorry I almost forgot an ingredient.
To each 5 gallon bucket you will need to add 1 cup of liquid dish detergent before you let it sit for the amount of days needed, I use Ajax, its a little thicker than others.
I found the best home made weed killer on youtube, work,s like a charm. The day has to be free of rain and it will take 1-3 days for results but it works.
I take a large bag of water softener salt and 5 – 5 gallon buckets. I measure with a large plastic glass a full glass full of salt into each of the 5 buckets until the whole bag of water softener salt is gone, each bucket gets an equal amount of the salt.
I then fill the buckets with water. Then leave the buckets sit for at least 2-3 days to marinate, the salt evaporates into the water the longer you let the buckets sit.
Stir before putting mixture into your sprayer. Make sure to spray only what you want to get rid of because this will kill everything.
That horrible vine that was brought to our country because someone thought it was pretty in the fall with all the red foliage. I had goats and they cleaned it up, but a certain time of year, even they wouldn’t touch it. We have got rid of most of ours, but it still pops up periodically. Do not burn it. My husband did and he got inflamed on his chest, arms, face, all around the eyes….. from the smoke. I like round up.
We used to have Poison Oak on out back hill and I bought Round Up and it didn’t work. It turned it the most beautiful of green ever and more healthy. I had gotten it on my face from the dog getting into it and it was awful. So I got out the carburetor spray and it worked great. Although probably not such a good idea.
That should be on our back hill.
was never allergic to poison ivy until a few years ago–i had small cuts on my legs and the poison ivy ‘got in’ every year i seem to get even more sensitive to it!
I am in South Carolina and Goat Rentals are becoming popular for clearing land and getting rid of poison ivy!
I’ve found washing in warm (not hot) water with lots of Fels Naptha soap (bar laundry soap) anytime I even THINK I’ve been exposed to poison ivy works best for me. I’m very sensitive to the poison ivy, and it seems to delight in growing up in between the liriope and wintercreeper plants, and at the base of my crape myrtles where I can’t easily spray. I use long handled loppers to cut as low as I can, use the loopers to dump in a wide plastic bin (used just for this purpose), and let it bake in the sun for several days before it gets disposed of. Any clothes that have been exposed get washed with Fels Naptha soap and hot water. Also, if you DO get a patch of the blisters on your skin, applying hot water (as hot as you can stand) will relieve the itching for an hour or so, time enough to get to sleep anyway.
thank you for showing me how to get rid of poison ivy now how do I get rid of wisteria ?
Karen,
Simply dig it out and deal with any new sprouts as they appear. Never give them a chance to get a hold.
You are really appreciated. Thanks !
Thanks Martha!
Thanks Mike, the poison ivy info sure helped me. I am really sensitive to the vine. You are a
fine person to forward the ” gardening knowledge ” to us. Good work. Please don’t think you are appreciated.
I have never had any affect from poison ivy , I can walk thru big patches, mow patches of poison
ivy , while others are watching and telling me to stop , , . I just don’t get any affect from poison ivy.
i have even been asked to go into patches ,just to get a tractor ,or a car out of a patch.
I read an article about removing urushiol from the skin. They say something that causes friction while washing is the most effective way to remove it, such as a luffa, sorry If spelled it wrong. Urushiol is an oil and just like motor oil it is hard to remove by simply washing with soap and water. You need to scrub it.
Can’t belive you would recommend round-up knowing what it does!! Especially what it does to the bees. You know, the bees that we need to pollinate all the lovely things we are all trying to grow!!
Don’t take poison ivy lightly like I did. Like George’s comment below, I also cut and pulled vines off off some 100 feet of fence. I had never had poison ivy before, so figured I wasn’t allergic to it, nor did I have the knowledge about the potency of what is in the vine. I ended up with systemic poison ivy and was pretty sick for a month. Mind you I had pre-existing adrenal problems. I never went to a doctor. I’m too stubborn. But in hindsight I could have died because with low adrenal function, I really needed steroids to get through that. Don’t even bother cutting poison ivy. It seems to risky to me. Put a mask on, long sleeve clothes and pants and SPRAY!!! Or have a professional do it. It’s just not worth it. We have to do the fence again, as we are selling the house, and I’m looking for something systemic to spray on leaves only to get at roots…I saw Bonide Poison ivy killer (herbacide that only targets the plant and not surrounding grass/etc) ….not many reviews, but they are all excellent – which makes me skeptical – has anyone ever heard of it or used it??
I have poisen ivy all over the place , when it gets too close for comfort I spay it down with HOT WATER… hose hooked up to an inside sink. spay the roots down when the water is good and hot….then spay down the leaves. It kept growing up under my kitchen window ,I sprayed it down for about three times , its gone never came back its been about five years now.
I did that with a pot of boiling water and ended up breathing the fumes of the oils. Its best to wear a mask when doing this
I suspect that it’s a broadleaf weed killer if it says it won’t kill grass. I don’t know of anything that only kills poison ivy, so it will kill ANY broadleaf plant, even desirable ones. You have to be very careful to only spray the poison ivy.
It is a broadleaf weed killer. It will kill poison ivy, poison oak, poison sumac, and kudzu. And these are the additional “weeds quote that it kills… Alder, Annual yellow sweet clover, Artichoke, Aster, Austrian fieldcress, Bedstraw, Beggartick, Biden, Bindweed, Bird vetch, Bitterweed, Bitter wintercress, Black- eyed Susan, Black medic, Blackmustard, Black-seed plantain, Blessed thistle, Blue lettuce, Blue vervain, Box elder, Bracted plantain, Brassbuttons, Bristly oxtongue, Broadleaf dock, Broadleaf plantain, Broomweed, Buckhorn, Buckhorn plantain, Bulbous buttercup, Bull nettle, Bull thistle, Burdock, Burning nettle, Bur ragweed, Burweed, Buttercup, Canada thistle, Carolina geranium, Carpetweed, Catchweed bedstraw, Catsear, Catnip, Chickweed, Chicory, Cinquefoil, Clover, Cockle, Cocklebur, Coffeebean, Coffeeweed, Common chickweed, Common mullein, Common sowthistle, Corn Chamomile, Creeping jenny, Crimson clover, Croton, Cudweed, Curly dock, Curly indigo, Dandelion, Dead nettle, Dock, Dogbane, Dogfennel, Elderberry, English daisy, Fall dandelion, False dandelion, False flax, False sunflower, Fiddleneck, Field bindweed, Field pansy, Flea bane (daisy), Flixweed, Florida betony, Florida pusley, Frenchweed, Galinsoga, Garlic mustard, Goathead, Goatsbeard, Goldenrod, Ground ivy, Gumweed, Hairy bittercress, Hairy fleabane, Hawkweed, Healall, Heartleaf WEEDS Cont.
drymary, Hedge bindweed, Hedge mustard, Hemp, Henbit, Hoary cress, Hoary plantain, Hoary vervain, Honeysuckle, Hop clover, Horsenettle, Horsetail, Indiana mallow, Ironweed, Jewelweed, Jimsonweed, Kochia, Knawel, Knotweed, Lambsquarter, Lespedeza, Locoweed, Lupine, Mallow, Marshelder, Matchweed, Mexicanweed, Milk vetch, Milkweed bloodflower, Mugwort, Morningglory, Mousear chickweed, Musk thistle, Mustard, Narrowleaf plantain, Narrowleaf vetch, Nettle, Orange hawkweed, Oxalis, Oxeye daisy, Parsley-piert, Parsnip, Pearlwort, Pennycress, Pennywort, Peppergrass, Pepperweed, Pigweed, Pineywoods bedstraw, Plains coreopsis, Plantain, Poison hemlock, Poison ivy, Poison oak, Pokeweed, Poorjoe, Povertyweed, Prickly lettuce, Prickly sida, Primrose, Prostrate knotweed, Prostrate pigweed, Prostrate spurge, Prostrate vervain, Puncture vine, Purslane, Ragweed, Red clover, Redroot pigweed, Red sorrel, Redstem filaree, Rough cinquefoil, Rough fleabane, Roundleafed marigold, Rush, Russian pigweed, Russian thistle, St. Johnswort, Scarlet pimpernel, Scotch thistle, Sheep sorrel, Shepherdspurse, Slender plantain, Smallflower galinsoga, Smartweed, Smooth dock, Smooth pigweed, Sneezeweed, Southern wild rose, Sowthistle, Spanishneedle, Spatterdock, Speedwell, Spiny Amaranth, Spiny cocklebur, Spotted catsear, Spotted knapweed, Spotted spurge, Spurge, Spurweed, Stinging nettle, Stinkweed, Stitchwort, Strawberry clover, Sumac, Sunflower, Sweet clover, Tall nettle, Tall vervain, Tansy mustard, Tansy ragwort, Tanweed, Tarweed, Thistle, Tick trefoil, Toadflax, Trailing Crownvetch, Tumble mustard, Tumble pigweed, Tumbleweed, Velvet leaf, Venice mallow, Veronica, Vervain, Vetch, Virginia buttonweed, Virgina creeper, Virginia pepperweed, Wavyleaf bullthistle, Western clematis, Western salsify, White clover, White mustard, Wild mustard, Wild aster, Wild buckwheat, Wild carrot, Wild four-o’-clock, Wild garlic, Wild geranium, Wild lettuce, Wild marigold, Wild onion, Wild parsnip, Wild radish, Wild rape, Wild strawberry, Wild sweet potato, Wild vetch, Willow, Witchweed, Woodsorrel, Woolly croton, Woolly morningglory, Woolly plantain, Wormseed, Yarrow, Yellow rocket, Yellowflower pepperweed and other broadleaf weeds.
I have never lost for growth or old growth trees using this. I have lost saplings.
This may seem a bit too simple. My Brother in Law was talking to an Amish farmer locally who suggested boiling water to kill poison ivy.
I’ve been testing it on small batches at the base of trees and corners of my Acre yard. Has worked very effectively so far. By pouring slowly and persistently it appears to boil or cook the leaves and stems.
May need to scale up to a 55 gallon drum for bigger projects. My mother used to get Poison Ivy from dust coming in the car windows on a dusty country road.
She also got it off our clothes when my Father and I came in from cutting firewood in the winter.
Will it kill Day Lilly
Raymond,
Any chemical designed to kill weeds will kill or seriously harm other plants as well.
The vinegar, salt, and Dawn dish detergent works the best!
wish I had know you wanted it gone that old hag Hillary will eat it
STFU — keep your political crap to yourself, no matter which way you lean. I found this site while searching for help killing poison ivy. It’s SOOOOOOOO tiring to keep running into loudmouth political BS in the most non-political areas of the web while trying to find helpful information.
I agree! So childish.
Please, don’t insult children. billy bob is not being childish but is being an ignorant ingrate..
Thank you. That kind of vicious, gratuitous, personal insult, which offends decent people who want to work together to solve problems– whether poison ivy or politics– is what is ruining our beautiful country today. People who indulge in that kind of behavior are shameful.
Thanks for the useful advice about non-herbicide solutions for poison ivy.
I agree with you STFU PLEASE !!
Keep the political BS on the political sites !!
AMEN!
oh lighten up !!! I though it was rather funny myself.;)
Agree with STFU, childish B.S. that has nothing to do with the topic.
Yes. I bought ortho poison ivy killer for a large patch and it worked. Did not come back the following year either. I was careful to try and spray only the leaves of the plant I wanted gone and it was great
Steve
There is a soap called Felsnaptha that you can buy at a hardware store. You can also get it at pharmacies, but it’s more expensive. If you wash within 30 minutes, it will remove the oil from your hands or wherever you think you got exposed. They used to use it back in the day as a laundry soap. It also helps to relieve the itch and dry out the blisters, if you are unfortunate to get into poison ivy and not know about it until it’s too late (usually about 12 hours later).
Vicki, Our Walmart carries FelsNaptha in the laundry section. We grate approximately 1/16 of a bar (the shape of the bar makes that pretty simple) and use it very often in the laundry after working outside to remove the poison ivy oils from our clothes. Quickly washing in a cool shower with the Fels before we do anything else also helps remove the oils from our skin . If there isn’t time for a shower or we are just taking a lunch break we wash up to our elbows with Fels and get the rest within a few hours before the irritation begins. Remember to wash gloves, hats and everything you are wearing and leave those boots outside!
Good old FelsNaptha… it works against ticks, chiggers too!
anyone have experience with Kleen UP?
George, I’ve never used it, can’t say much about it.
Hey, Mike (and everybody else I’ve missed so much) I’m trying to get my feet back under me (after losing Gene and Daddy and Mama in the last little while, and two of the things I’ve started working on again in the last week are: trying to do some work on the yard where many detrimental plants have invaded while I’ve been necessarily otherwise occupied and trying to go through the massive number of emails that have accumulated for the same reason. Today I saw your advice on fighting poison ivy and since I had just applied the KLEEN UP product a week ago and rechecked it today, I passed on what I’m seeing as a result of having applied it. If I have to work on it some more, I’m going to go with your solution. I’ve never gone wrong following your advice since becoming a member in 2007. God bless.
Thank you Bonnie, I appreciate that. Great hearing from you and take care.
just remember it is poison, glycosphate and it gets in the water table causes cancer. Me thinks poison ivy is not as toxic. Boiling water 🙂
As to KLEEN UP, I used it one week ago on poison ivy climbing on a fence and up several of my pecan trees. I checked it again today and can say for the first time, I was able to see some fading/splotching/wilting of the leaves ABOVE the zone I was able to actually physically reach with the spray. While I was anxious to see faster results, that really was unreasonable. For the first time today, though, I’m beginning to have hope that it IS going to affect the parts of the plant which were out of my physical reach.
You can easily kill plant above your reach with the loppers–just cut the stem at a level you can reach.
That is why I cut the stem and then use a foam paint brush to “paint” the cut stems and leaves below the cut. Other plants will not be affected. But the hot water sounds much better. By the way, Round Up almost killed me back in 2000. Got lymphoma from it. I was not using it, a farmer was and it drifted onto my property. Also like the vinegar and salt. IN THE MEANTIME HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS FOR BUSH HONEYSUCKLE??????????
It’s “round up” just a different name… all containing glyphosate. Glyphosate is the only systemic broadleaf weed killer I know that works. A robber dishwashing glove to protect you…then a brown jersey glove to apply… just wet your finger tip with a 25% solution… in a gallon freezer bag. So 1/4 cup of glyphosate (30-40%… Do it Best Hardware) to 3/4 cup of water… rubbed on the leaves works fine and protects the surrounding area from drift caused by spraying. If you have to spray you want a cup of sticker-spreader liquid to add to your spray or I use a cup of cheap vegetable oil and 1 cup of liquid ivory soap to help it stick to the leaf. You put the water in the sprayer… about 90% of what’s required then mix the oil soap a roundup (glyphosate) in a plastic container ( like a cool whip container) then pour it into your water then topoff the water if needed. Then you agitate your tank… turning to upside down several times… like a dozen. As you spray stop to agitate. That insures that your chemical stays suspended in your spray solution.. I usually combine my glyphosate with other chemicals to speed its work time … but with poison ivy and thistle you don’t want to do that… use it alone and wait the 14 days or it will just come back again. Better to be thorough and do it once then to rush and half to do it again! Great Success to you! Dirt Boy Dave
Rubber dish glove
You are ignorant Round Up is Agent Orange! Stop using Evil Monsanto Depopulation Products http://www.naturalnews.com/053883_glyphosate_cancer_Roundup_weedkiller.html http://www.naturalnews.com/2017-03-06-brand-name-processed-foods-found-laced-with-glyphosate-weed-killer.html http://thepoisonappleoftheworld.com/monsanto-family-were-jewish-slave-dealers-and-owners/ http://naturalsociety.com/still-eating-agent-orange/
Way to go Geri! Monsanto are very evil and will eventually make everyone sick! They are the biggest advocate of genetically modified plants/food, especially corn and soy. But they are branching out. Please do your homework everyone and STOP this madness! Do not purchase anything they make, particularly Roundup, it is poison! If this was the last thing on Earth to kill poision ivy I would not use it…..
Geri West:
First I’d like to tackle that Monsanto Family link. In every society you will be able to identify sectors which exploit people under the protection of the law. With regard to the slave trade, whatever they did may have been immoral, but it was LEGAL. With regard to chemicals, they may developed and sold products that were responsible for the health problems of millions of people, but those products were sold legally.
Some day historians will look back similarly at the disregard for public wellbeing shown by sectors of our society. I expect much to be said about the greed of the Walton family and the fast food industry. I expect they’ll be dismayed by the disregard for public health of Big Cola and the processed food industry. I expect they’ll be disgusted by all aspects of exploitation in China & India and the people who do business with them.
Hindsight will still be 20/20 in the future, so I expect a lot of their criticism to be similar to your anti-Monsanto link in that points will be made about how people did things back then and how we don’t do that now. However, I hope our future critics do not place as much importance on vilifying the races of the major perpetrators of these crimes against humanity. I hope that instead they reflect on the awful things that were done and in order to work toward a future without that mess.
Second, to say Round Up is Agent Orange is utter nonsense. One of your provided links merely made a comparison that was at least partially based on inconclusive data. Round Up contains a much safer herbicide than either of the two components of Agent Orange. As well, Round Up has never been reported to be contaminated with dioxin.
For our modern society to function, we rely on many harmful or potentially harmful substances every damn day. That “new car smell” people love so much is full of carcinogens. Used with proper precautions, many carcinogens greatly improve the quality of life and pose no substantial health risk.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Facts about Agent Orange and RoundUp for those who do not feel like reading the wall of blog in your 4 links:
In 1971 the USA banned Agent Orange, a herbicide composed of a 50/50 mix of 2,4,5-T and 2,4-D.
“In 1970, the United States Department of Agriculture halted the use of 2,4,5-T on all food crops except rice, and in 1985, the EPA terminated all remaining uses in the U.S. of this herbicide.” — wikipedia
2,4-D, the most popular herbicide in Australia for broadleaf control, is still used in over 1500 herbicides, BUT ROUNDUP IS NOT ONE OF THEM.
anyone have any experience with Kleen UP?
Thanks for the vinegar recipe! We share the Earth, so Round Up isn’t really a reasonable choice – why even bother to suggest it as an option? It’s not a viable one.
RoundUp could kill us all!
You’re stupid so if Roundup gets you the world will be smarter..
Don….no need to be hateful. Please don’t call people names and remember we’re all just voicing our opinions.
Roundup is 18% salt and 81.11% water.
RoundUp herbicide by Monsanto contains the following ingredients:
In a letter forwarded to Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides, Monsanto identified RoundUp’s ingredients as:
Isopropylamine salt of glyphosate (active ingredient)
Water
The ethoxylated tallowamine surfactant
Related organic acids of glyphosate
Excess isopropylamine
So, what are the source ingredients for these? The only one I can guess about is the water–water is water, but from what are the other ingredients made?
It is not common salt, Read the whole phrase. This issue is the glyphosate. Please research that. You will find among other disturbing information that glyphosate is commonly sprayed on hay fields. Glyphosate passes through the digestive system of horses (less so in ruminants) unaltered. If you use manure with glyphosate on your garden you’ll find that broadleaf vegetables will not grow there for up to 10 years. Contact your local Extension office for verification of this information. .
I’m not so sure about that. I’ve been using this product for 40 years. See this https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/2014/07/roundup-safe-use/
Much more than salt…I ended up at the hospital after using it a few years ago. My face and throat were swollen. My husband walked right past me and didn’t know it was me.
Will it get rid of the bermuda grass that has invaded my garden as well? 10 years you say? I am 65 and may not have to weed again for 10 years. After fighting the war for 13 years it sounds good to me.
When you say “salt”, do you mean sodium chloride or something else? Do leave it to me to assume what you mean.
Sheila,
I assume that’s what the poster is talking about.
Poison ivy could kill you or a loved one, ever see a kid with a sever case? It can be spread by your favorite pet walking through it hard to tell a dog to stay away when you have acreage, or if a person comes in contact with the oily chemical from an affected person’s skin or clothing, the urushiol could be passed on and a poison ivy rash may develop in a second individual.. Like someone else said cars trash human excrement etc. are destroying the earth. Ever see a turtle that had a plastic drink container, you know the ones that hold the bottles together. Fast acting sprays is the way I go, not waiting weeks for vinegar recipe or other non toxics to work. Other then this is I try to go Earth friendly. JMO
I like the way you think!
I hope you don’t drive a car. Roundup does not harm the environment.
can you help on the controversy regarding roundup? Hasnt data proven that it’s harmful to more than the poison ivy you’re trying to get rid of? Do you have other information? thanks
Nancy,
I believe that 99% of what you read about roundup is false, it truly has become a very political thing that rampant with false information. Search this site for the article that I did on roundup a couple of years ago.
Monsanto’s Round Up is used as a desiccant on wheat before harvest because it slightly increases the yield. Thus we have rampant gluten insensitivity and intolerance. 80 percent of all corn products (corn syrup, chips, ears, cornstarch etc., is genetically modified to contain Round Up so we are eating and drinking it people. Independent studies on RU in Europe (meaning non Monsanto, FDA or US funded studies-read Monsanto’s back pocket here) have proven that it CAUSES cancer. There will be arrests for Monsanto’s crimes against humanity in the future much the same as there were in the tobacco industry. Do not buy any Monsanto product.
There truly are very strong opinions about Monsanto and Roundup and it’s a politically charged conversation which means the two sides will never agree and creates a sea of misinformation. I don’t agree with much that is written on this subject. In this industry, on a daily basis I see chemicals used that I feel are far worse than roundup. Chemicals that we are forced to use in order to comply with pest control issues. My opinion of roundup can be found here. https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/2014/07/roundup-safe-use/
It’s not rocket science. It’s common sense. Speaking of political. How are we discussing round up on a site where I’m looking for natural ways to kill poison ivy? If I wanted to use round up I would have researched it. I do not use any chemicals on my property. I have very healthy animals and plants. I don’t want to hear about this product from the corporate minions. Keep this site real please. I’m out.
Roundup is poison and poison effect plants and people. , Farmers who use glyphosate find after a while it does not work any more because there are weeds that are resistant to it. It kills the finer roots on the crops, and it also kills your digestive system and weakens your immune system. I suppose if you use it one time it might be hard to find any evidence of its effect on you. I would not use it.
Quite simply I do not buy into this logic. Farmers continue to use it because it works when used as intended.
A few days ago I read an article that gave statistics about rates of cancer (certain kinds – lymphomas and such) among farmers and they have a higher incidence of cancer. My daughter-in-law works at a large children’s hospital in a farming area and they have many cases of childhood cancer. So many that they are now doing a research study to find out why all the migrant workers children are getting cancer.
This is the only place in the thread that mentions resistance. As a farmer, I see Roundup-resistant weeds as the major problem with the Roundup usage scenarios. The U.S. now has weeds in every ecosystem that are resistant to Roundup, including ragweed, the most potent allergen on the planet. To kill resistant weeds, farmers spray more often and they use more dangerous chemicals, like 2,4D and dicamba.
Sorry, but from what I am noticing with trees and vegetation along roadways and where cars idle, I have to conclude that it is likely that there is RoundUp residue in all of the ethanol/biodiesel made from RoundUp-sprayed crops. The problem is that it doesn’t happen overnight, so people are not “getting the flick” of cause and effect. It looks very dramatic when a big tree limb falls on a car in a storm, but this is predictable because that is the side of the tree that is damaged by exposure to biofumes. If the tree is on a corner, or on a golf course (where mowers go around and around it), all side of the tree will be affected. Once the tree is compromised, pests move in; not the other way around. The PTB would have us believe that trees and vegetation are unique in all the world as organisms that are attacked when they are healthy. This is backwards thinking/presentation. First the organism is compromised, then the pests move in as they have for millenia. And, by using the universal term “pesticide,” people are not informed about what kills pests, and what is designed to kill vegetation. There are a lot of bug-phobic people out there who will spray any chemical, in whatever amount they think they need to, in order to kill bugs; but if they were informed that these chemicals are killing vegetation, they might not be so quick to use them. If this is what they (biofumes) are doing to our trees and vegetation, what are they doing to us, and our flora? Yes, poison ivy is terrible, but you can try the vinegar (or something else non-toxic) treatment, and also cover up and protect yourself, and be mindful of the surfaces (clothing, shoes, etc.) that have come in contact with the plant, and not spread it around. Great tip about not burning it, as well!
Round-up and other brands of herbicide that contain glyphosate are sprayed along most roadways in America, especially around telephone poles, guardrails, signposts, etc.
This and over 200 other synthetic chemicals are showing 8p in the cord bood of newborn babies.
I was exposed to an herbicide in 1991. It almost killed me. It was sprayed around my car when I was shopping in a store. It burned out the lining of my lungs, my eyesight was blurry for weeks. I developed many, many allergies. I also developed asthma which developed into chronic bronchitis which is still present today. It was the old formula od triox. I would never use round-up. It is a chemical. All of these chemicals are dangerous. I thank you Mike for listing a natural alternative. That is what I was looking for. Google led me to this site
I would never use water, it is also a chemical.
Roundup is sprayed all the time along highways and under power lines. This is the same company that made PCBs (don’t worry–they;re safe! they said) DDT, Agent orange, artificial sweeteners that are now known to not be safe…but we should believe that Roundup is just fine. It’ is not. No one should be using it. It is banned in many countries.
There are have been multiple court cases that have been won against Monsato for cancer caused by repeated Roundup use. One such case was a man who worked at a school that required the use of it to treat weeds around the school; he was told it was safe and used if for years until he became sick. This is only one example where someone sued and won because Roundup was proven to be the cause of his illness. There have been cases like this all over the world and fairly good evidence that it has contributed to the decline in bee populations around the world.
I have read that the oil in poison ivy will stay on gardening clothes for a year or more so be sure to wash what you wear after removing it carefully.
One thing that helps the rash is a trip to the ocean. The salt water dries it out. There is also a medicine called Zanfal that is very helpful in controlling the itch; it is expensive and the instructions call for mixing a large amount with warm water to apply to the areas with the rash; they say that amount is necessary to work but that is not true on smaller spots. An anti-itch moisturizer by Cera-Ve can be purchased in many drug stores and even grocery stores and also helps with fast and long-lasting reiief. It comes in a jar and does not need to be mixed, just applied to the rash as needed.
While we are on the subject of obnoxious wide-spread vines, does anyone know how to get rid of Virginia creeper? It has long vines that are hard to trace back to the rooted end and I have been fighting it for years. It grows all over my property and has gone up trees to form large matted messes at the top. I was appalled to see it listed as a decorative vine at a recent plant sale that specialized in native plants and perrenials. It also grows up stucco walls and twines around bushes like lilacs and everything else that doesn’t move. I have had to remove it from the spaces between windows and their frames but it always comes back the next year. It does turn red in the fall but it too invasive to be recommended anywhere.
When I was in third grade many decades ago, we had to bring in Fall leaves for homework. My teacher tasted one leaf that she thought was sassafras and was in the hospital for a long time with poison ivy in her digestive tract. Other than that one awful mistake, she was a great teacher.
Banned in Sweden. Contaminent of ground water
It can seep into the ground water. It does not break down as Monsanto says. Plants can and do develop an immunity to it–hyper weeds. It is banned in Sweden. Monsanto is a powerful company–remember how articles written by authors paid by the tobacco companies told us that tobacco smoke was harmless. Still–I blast the PI with Round-up, figuring judicious use is not as harmful as Roundup Ready crops.
When applied correctly, never to the point of run off, Roundup works very well and does not linger in the soil. Many times I’ve planted just days after spraying roundup, never an adverse effect.
the Canadian Government researchers found RoundUp in the soil 300 days after it had been applied, and that wasn’t the limit, it was only the last time they actually tested for it.
It is patented as an antibiotic and is likely implicated in the huge increase in various diseases such as leaky gut syndrome as out gut health is determined by our own gut bacteria and RoundUp DOES affect them, just as the patent says it will.
Humans are actually made up of much much more bacteria which works in symbiosis with us than we have unique “human” cells, so embedding something that tries to harm our bacteria is a peculiar thing to do if there is any concern at all for health.
Glyphosate ( RoundUp) is now showing up in mother’s milk and was in every loaf of bread tested in the UK. Hardly the thing to expect if it does indeed become inert and somehow vanish like a politician’s promise when it hits the ground.
But here’s the problem, there is so much false information out there surrounding Roundup that we have not idea what to believe, what not to believe. Bayer just made a bid to buy Monsanto. Would they really do that if this product is such a problem? That’s what I ask myself.
But thanks for your advice Mike. I appreciate this very very much. Before I read your post always pretty much going to get up and go to Home Depot and get that round up but now I said let me finish reading your article. we’ve had a problem with the poison ivy in m bbackyard at my Brooklyn house for 3 years. And it is growing along the fences and the other plants and possibly the fig tree. I foolishly started pulling them up and cut them down in my shorts and short sleeves and gotten only some on me. but even that was big pain that left rashes hand itching. My friend told me to use bleach on the ranches that help kkil the sting and broke down the on the skin what do you think about that?
But thanks for your advice Mike. I appreciate this very very much. Before I read your post always pretty much going to get up and go to Home Depot and get that round up but now I said let me finish reading your article. we’ve had a problem with the poison ivy in m bbackyard at my Brooklyn house for 3 years. And it is growing along the fences and the other plants and possibly the fig tree. I foolishly started pulling them up and cut them down in my shorts and short sleeves and gotten only some on me. but even that was big pain that left rashes hand itching. My friend told me to use bleach on the rashes that help kkil the sting and brake down the oils on my skin what do you think about that? I also use those hand soaps made for Poison Ivy from the pharmacies so I’ll send you that vinegar concoction and report back and where plenty of long sleeve pants & shirt and gloves thank you very much againd have a good summer
You can also use tincture/tea of a plant called jewelweed for the itching. Sometimes it grows next to poison ivy, so if you are exposed to the ivy, you can grab some and immediately rub it on the exposed area. Learn what it looks like and see whether it grows near where you live. Amazing plant, as they mostly all are!
it grows by creeks. if put under water the leaves and stalk is translucent and will have pink or yellow little flowers on it. also called wild touch-me-nots. just brake open the stalk and rub on infected area. it will be sticky but let it dry. it works real good
My grandmother always washed us with Fels-Napha laundry soap when we got into the stuff. Always use tepid water to wash hands and clothes. In California it is called Poison Oak, but it climbs trees and fences and turns a beautiful red in Fall.
If your animals play in the patch, you can pick up the oils from their fur. Oakland keeps a herd of goats to clean it out of their parks! Maybe we should start a Rent-a-goat service!
Charline, somebody just posted that there is such a service, so there certainly can be more.
One of the local colleges here in the Philadelphia suburbs made the news a few years ago when they used rented goats to clear out the PI on campus. There might be more of those rent-a-goat companies than we know.
I have used Soft Scrub to wash where Inhad been exposed to poison ivy. I’m guessing that the course texture got the oils off, while the bleach disinfected it. Whatever, it worked.
Annette,
I agree, it’s really important to get the oil off your skin before you break out. The stronger the soap and the more vigorous the washing the better.
I made some yesterday and sprayed and it rained that afternoon. What should I do now.
I also, am very alergic to poison ivy.after being around itI wash with soap and warm water then rinse my hands with vinegar. works every time.so far.
Thank you so much for all of your information. I will not use round up because I want to preserve a clean environment. I have been praying for something to rid my back fence from poison ivy and feel very hopeful and blessed today after having read this..
I had a small yard in West Virginia a few years ago. When poison ivy came up in my flower beds I had pretty good luck getting rid of it by smothering it with a thick layer of wet newspapers held down with rocks. Cut and destroyed the vines that went up the fence ((VERY CAREFULLY), and smothered those roots also. Had to remember to keep papers wet and add peppers if ivy spread and came up nearby.
I have tons of poison ivy and poison oak vines on my new property. But there are a couple of very large trees, maybe six inches in diameter, that have leaves that look like poison ivy or oak. Can this grow into a tree and not just be a vine?
Kelli,
No poison ivy oak will always be a vine, often a very thick vine, but still very much vine like.
Poisonwood trees in the Florida Keys grow up to 20 feet tall and are every bit as bad as “regular” poison ivy.
I’ve seen the poison ivy vine grow up a tree, and then as the tree grows it sort of covers the vine itself making it difficult to see or cut. The poison ivy will grew leaves overhead where the vines themselves are more out of sight.
I have seen a tree with lower branches that are not part of the tree but poison ivy with its 3 leaf clusters that did not match the rest of the tree’s leaves exept in their green color. It was down the street from my house on the edge of the woods and I passed it daily when I walked my dog.
I was told that poison ivy is also native to the amazon jungle and grows to be trees there…. and to avoid wooden items made in the amazon because it could be made of poison ivy wood which is alleged to have a lovely grain but it is high in the troublesome active oil as the vine is … ALSO if you are highly allergic to poison ivy beware of cashew nuts as they are in the same family of plants …
Yes, it can grow into a tree if it doesn’t have a tree to support it. I cut one down that was about 20 feet high.
Kelli: It’s likely that your “large oak trees” whose leaves look like PI, are box elders, Small box elder plants’ leaves strongly resemble PI. BE’s grow to be very large with a wide limb-spread, very messy, etc. In the mid-west they’re considered “junk trees” – most of which are volunteers, growing almost anywhere from wind-blown seeds, , They’re a member of the maple family, but wise people will get rid of them before they’re gifted with invasions of box elder bugs not to mention daily limb pickups. PI is spread primarily by seed-eating birds to whom the white PI seeds have no deleterious effects, so that’s why you find PI in flower beds, gardens, under shade trees, along stream beds, etc. where birds roost and nest. I use rubber surgical gloves to handle PI, and especially when the plants are young, I use a dandelion pry tool to get rid of the young plants and their roots (patiently-carefully) as soon as I find them usually, but if I find a tree surrounded by many plants, I use RoundUp. Of course, never use chemicals – even yard ferts & broad leaf killers near a stream bed or water body. I clip up the plants & put in my PI bucket & douse them w/hot water. When DOA, I bury the parts. I remove the gloves “surgeon-style’ in the garbage bin, after cleaning my tools and putting the bucket behind the shed. I grew up on a cash-drop-dairy farm as one of 10 kids. Half of us were immune to PI the others were calomine pink miserable usually during the summer. My luck ran out when I got PO (poison oak) while producing a video feature in a CA woods when I was 54…horrible! Now back in MI, I’m very prone to PI — and other plants (raspberry & blackberry bushes/leaves) and some dusty activities (cutting firewood any time of year – the sawdust) can bring it on, as a small patch on an arm / leg / fingers. Hope this helps…
Kelli: It’s likely that your “large oak trees” whose leaves look like PI, are box elders, Small box elder plants’ leaves strongly resemble PI. BE’s grow to be very large with a wide limb-spread, very messy, etc. In the mid-west they’re considered “junk trees” – most of which are volunteers, growing almost anywhere from wind-blown seeds, , They’re a member of the maple family, but wise people will get rid of them before they’re gifted with invasions of box elder bugs not to mention daily limb pickups. PI is spread primarily by seed-eating birds to whom the white PI seeds have no deleterious effects, so that’s why you find PI in flower beds, gardens, under shade trees, along stream beds, etc. where birds roost and nest. I use rubber surgical gloves to handle PI, and especially when the plants are young, I use a dandelion pry tool to get rid of the young plants and their roots (patiently-carefully) as soon as I find them usually, but if I find a tree surrounded by many plants, I use RoundUp. Of course, never use chemicals – even yard ferts & broad leaf killers near a stream bed or water body. I clip up the plants & put in my PI bucket & douse them w/hot water. When DOA, I bury the parts. I remove the gloves “surgeon-style’ in the garbage bin, after cleaning my tools and putting the bucket behind the shed. I grew up on a cash-drop-dairy farm as one of 10 kids. Half of us were immune to PI the others were calomine pink miserable usually during the summer. My luck ran out when I got PO (poison oak) while producing a video feature in a CA woods when I was 54…horrible! Now back in MI, I’m very prone to PI — and other plants (raspberry & blackberry bushes/leaves) and some dusty activities (cutting firewood any time of year – the sawdust) can bring it on, as a small patch on an arm / leg / fingers. Hope this helps…
One word people, JEWEL WEED. Google it. It’s natural, it works and had been used for many years by Indians and the good ole people here in the Appalachian. It’s even in some top end Poison ivy treatments you buy in stores for a high price. It works and I use it considering I have to get a shot every time I just look at it. HIGHLY Allergic. It’s a plant/flower that grows in the eastern US around water and creeks. It prevents and helps sooth/treat the rash when rubbed on the skin.
LOL my bad, Two words***
Absolutely jewel weed!
I want to spray to kill the poison ivy going up my trees, but one tree has a squirrel nest that they have baby squirrels in every year and I don’t want to kill them. Will spraying chemicals to kill persistent poison ivy endanger the squirrels?? I like your alternative recipe of vinegar, salt, and dish soap — would that be safe and not harm the squirrels??
Waiting to hear from you —
Sharon,
Best thing to do is find a way to safely cut the vine near the ground. That way all you have to treat is what is low to the ground. See this https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/2012/10/how-to-get-rid-of-poison-ivy/
I had a lot of poison ivy vine in my yard. It was vinning everywhere. When I tried to cut it the vines spread in all directions and it just grew back. When I sprayed it the grass all around it died too. So this is what I did. I wore gloves and sat on my wheeled garden stool. I took a small artist paint brush and painted just the poison ivy leaves. with a full strength weed killer that you are suppost to dilute. Two things happended. The product only got on the poison ivy and it was strong enough that it killed the vine that spread in all directions and it killed it to the root. When you paint the leaf you may have to give support with your other hand or something you have to hold. Just a thought and what worked for me.
Miriam,
Great advice, I often paint weed killers on in areas that are close to other plants.
That’s what I did. Two huge pine trees at the edge of our property and one on my neighbor’s land had poison ivy vines climbing up 40 feet or more, with several stems 8 or 10 inches across. I used a chainsaw to cut them near the ground and again up near eye level in the fall, and pulled up everything that would come up easily.
It’s been three years now and the stuff is just starting to creep back up all three trees.
Guess I’ll cut it back again, but I bet the stems won’t be ten inches across any more. An hour every three years to kill the stuff is not so bad.
I find it is best to wait for the vine in the tree to dry up before it is pulled down.
In the late fall I kill my poison ivy, oak and sumac by cutting the roots in two and sticking each end of the root into small bottles of any poison I have around. Vinegar and Dawn or Fly killer for horses, carpenter ant killer, even that Home Defense which I had added Precor (IGR flea killer) to. The plants absorb the bottle contents and I pull them off the trees once every two years or so. Make sure you gear up because contact is still a no-no.
I looked up rent a goat, and there are plenty of sites to do this!
I live in Connecticut where can I rent a GOAT I live, in the Hartford,area
Please help me.,it’s getting on my dogs and irritating them too.,THANK you
Your life is calling
Mike… Don’t know if you read these comments. I have emailed you and never got a reply. Be that as it may…
If you get a poison ivy rash, bath the area in PECAN LEAF tea. Put the leaves in water, bring just to a boil, then remove from the heat. Let it steep until cool. Strain and apply it with a clean cloth.
This remedy is THE MOST EFFECTIVE relief from poison ivy rashes we have ever tried. My son is highly reactive to poison ivy, and after years of accidental exposure, tons of money spent on over the counter, and prescription medications, every home remedy we could find… you name it, this is by far the best thing we have ever found.
The leaves can be used green or dried.
Think about it…. it makes perfect sense. Poison ivy doesn’t grow up pecan trees. Nature is just staring us in the face with this remedy.
Hope this is helpful to all those with reactions to poison ivy who read it.
Ann,
Thanks for the information. I don’t see incoming Email, that’s why I read the comments here.
Hi Ann,
I will surely try that remedy because I have a very bad reaction to poison ivy type plants. Steroids were the only things that worked on me, but they have very bad side-effects. Thanks for the tip! My son lives in another state, and his neighbor has several pecan trees. Gonna get him to send me some leaves.
I have a, massive, poison ivy vine growing up my pecan tree in the Houston Texas area.
I have posion ivy growing up my pecan trees & I live in Oklahoma
Kem,
See this https://mikesbackyardnursery.com/2012/10/how-to-get-rid-of-poison-ivy/
jewel weed will clear the poison ivy itch. leaves rolled up and crushed and the jewel weed rubbed on the infected are will clear up the itch and rash. you can also make a soap from jewel weed that will clear up the itch and rash.
David
You can also open the thick stems of the plant and smear the inside on the exposed areas before the rash appears. Jewel weed grows abundantly in my area and it is almost invasive in spots, like my back yard. You can identify it by the interesting form of the flowers and then look for the other plant characteristics before it blooms.
the product Tecnu, works like a miracle if you get poison ivy. Thanks for all your info!!
Walmart sells a pink spray that works with minutes to stop the itching and burning, and as long as it’s not life-threatening it will get rid of the reaction.
I agree with you Laurie . Tecnu is great for getting rid of Poison Ivy. I normally get poison ivy every year.. As far as trying to kill the vine I normally use salt water. I’ve also used saltwater to get rid of poison Ivy on my body. If you can go to the beach & spend the day swimming in the ocean this has always got rid of poison Ivy .
Hi Mike,
I will use this recipe to help get rid of poison ivy. I have Cats and 2 Dogs who love to help when I’m working in the yard, and I don’t like to use caustic products around my “Babies”. Thanks for all of your gardening tips.
There was a poison ivy problem at Sandy Hook Park in NJ and they rented goats to handle the problem. You CAN rent a goat!
http://www.myfoxny.com/story/22924778/goats-chow-down-on-poison-ivy-at-sandy-hook-nj
I have a question about identifying poison ivy. Will the poison ivy ever produce red berries? I have a vining plant with three leaves that will also grow clusters of berries that start out light green and will eventually turn red as the summer progresses. We believe it’s poison ivy, but I’m not sure. I have been infected with the rash a few years in a row, and believe that I might be getting it from my yard. Thanks for your help 🙂
Hey Mike , thanks for all you do !!
Happy belated birthday. May it be the best year ever!!
This is good information as we have poison ivy all over. Can’t wait to try this.
Does this also work for zumac?
Thanks
First: Poison ivy/Poison oak
What is the purpose of heating the vinegar except to assist in mixing the salt with it ?
Second: Fruit trees
I have several different kinds of fruit trees and I live in the South where insects and diseases take over the crops, unless they are sprayed regular. My main concern is with my Peach trees. They need to be sprayed ever 7-10 days to keep the insects and diseases out of them.
Do you know of any homemade mixtures that will protect the trees and fruit and will cost less than the insecticides and fungicides on the market.
Thanks,
Roger
If you started with a gallon of 5% vinegar, and heated it until the volume was reduced by one half, wouldn’t it then be 10% vinegar?
Only if only water boiled off. If the acetic acid (vinegar) if more volatile than water (I have no idea), you’d wind up with a weaker solution.
Reply to Bill W. If it’s really important to you to have a stronger vinegar/water ratio, and can’t find the higher percentage, if you have access to a cake decorating/candy-making supply department in a store, acetic acid crystals available in small bottles added to your puchased vinegar will increase the strength of your solution.
Many times I pulled poison ivy by hand with no problem. Then one day I pulled it, the next day I had the symptoms of poison ivy.
The moral of story is that you can become allergic to poison ivy at any time
I concur. I have been around and in poison ivy for at least 60 years and never had a reaction until last year I was rototilling in an area with no obvious poison ivy. When I was finished, I started pulling all the roots (tree roots I thought) that the blades had accumulated. When almost done, I recognized the color of poison ivy roots that were broken open. I was totally exposed. Luckily I only had a mild reaction but the was sensitivity works means the next time I will probably have a much stronger reaction.
Mike you said,
“Vinegar, when diluted with a gallon of water makes a good fertilizer …AND… When mixed full strength with salt, it works very much like Round-Up. ”
Are we doing our bodies a disservice if we to eat salt and vinegar potato chips. Will our bodies be adding a round-up alternative too?
Cheers, Don
Don,
Consider the salt and vinegar chips Fertilizer for our bodies. For proof: eat two bags daily for one week. Record your weight at the beginning of the experiment, and again at the end. You will see how well this fertilizer has improved your growth rate.
-Tracey
I am allergic to poiosn ivy poiosn sumac and poiosn oak I think in my 43 years have come in contact with all them. One time I sat in something on raft trip boy it was awlful glad you added this to your series lol maybe I will learn to stay away from poiosnious plants now
You made my day! Hilarious!
I’m retired and love working in my flower beds and garden and lived here for 22 years, but in the last 3-years I have poison and I have been to the doctors each late spring. I finally found the two main locations and plan to use the Home-Brew above mixture…..Where does it come from? I feed several birds all winter and 3 varieties of squirrels; Fox-Grey-Black, could these be the contributors?
Carl,
The birds are probably responsible for sure. And I’m not sure how long it takes the seeds to germinate. they might lay in the soil for two years before they germinate, so they might be there laying in wait.
Anxious to read your free garden book. Thanks
Love your article on poison ivy. I get it very easily too. I can’t keep pets because if they rub it I’ll catch if from them. I’ve had it in my lungs from breathing the smoke from neighbors that were burning weeds.
A few suggestions to add.
A detergent based soap is needed to remove the oil. Regular bath soap won’t do it, dish soap or laundry detergent works. If you touch it you have about 1 hour to 2 hours to wash and probably you won’t get it. If you do find you have it, and are as sensitive as I am, wash EVERYTHING you came in contact with for the last 2 days in hot water and detergent. All clothes, gloves, bedding, towels and PJ’s. I even wash doorknobs, car steering wheel and, well, I guess I get a little obsessive.
If you live north-ish (I’m in Florida now) Jewell weed works well on unexpected exposures. It usually grows in dampish places. Just crush the stems and rub it over the area exposed and you won’t get it. It has worked for me, but it doesn’t grow in the south. But I would still wash and change clothes as soon as I got home.
As for the itch… The best thing I have found is hot water. But only after you have washed it well first. The oil will stay on your skin unless it is washed off. That is where the “don’t scratch it, it will spread” comes from. The oil hasn’t been washed off and you get it on your hands when you scratch. The broken blisters don’t spread the rash.
So , hot Epson salt soak works well for me. Very hot water. It doesn’t itch for 6 to 8 hours. I’ve found this works better than any other remedy without a prescription.
When working around poison ivy and oak I wash up asap. Poison sumac seems to bother me most. I use Clorox or any bleach should work. I pour it on or wipe it on with a wash cloth and it is gone in 24 hrs. Stings a little but gets rid of it quickly.
I use bleach, too, and I am very allergic to poison ivy. Bleach works well. If there is a swimming pool open I jump into that!
Be very careful if using bleach or jumping into a pool after exposure. I use to do that and became highly allergic to chlorine in all forms and still 40 years later can’t use a pool with chlorine treated water or use bleach in the laundry..
Mike, If you take that mixture of vinegar, soap, salt and add 2oz. of orange oil apply during the hottest time of day. The vines will start to wilt within hours! Good Luck.
I appreciate the problem you have dealing with the poison ivy on your property. I never had much problem with it as a kid but as I grew older… I didn’t realize I was developing a greater sensitivity to it…nor did I fully comprehend the problem with burning it. I made the mistake of burning bunches of it after I’d killed it and let it set for awhile. I’m not sure my lungs will ever fully recover and the critical phase of recovery was long, dramatic and painful. It can’t be said enough…”Don’t Burn it.”
Hi Mike
I enjoyed reading your good article on poison ivy. I suffered from poison ivy many times, each time around June and July when their tiny seedlings grow unnoticeably mixed with other weeds in our garden. We eliminated almost all poison ivies but still we see them once in a while.
If someone gets poison ivy allergy, here is my advice. Urushiol is probably large molecules that stick on the skin and irritates but does not penetrate into the body. But if you scratch the irritating skin, you will propagate the urushiol to other parts of the skin, and possibly all over the body. So if irritation starts, wash the irritating parts of the skin with soap as thoroughly as possible, and even repeat the process a few times. Use warm water. Removing the resin by washing with soap is the most important thing to do before any treatment with poison ivy cream or any other care. As long as urushiol resin is on the skin, no medial treatment works well until it is washed away. The medical treatment, if the irritation becomes very severe, is hydrocotizon shot. Good luck.
Thank you Sho!
If you get in to it – the BEST by far remedy is TECHNU. Forget all that pink crap cause it is a waste of money. TECHNU is best used ASAP but can also be used hours or days later and alleviates the pain and itch and makes the Ivy rash go away pronto. May be hard to find, but well worth it.
I discovered it at my local COOP when I lived in New England where I had ACRES of Poison Ivy. Heh.
Have used tecnu in the past. It works great!!! I found using a clarifying shampoo works well too.
I just can’t use lotion or any moisturizer on the affected area. If it’s on my arms (usually on the inside of my elbow crease) I use powder that has baking soda in it.
It is pricey but worth it
It is not necessary to use any special cleanser…..the trick is to use a wash cloth and scrub…….I have seen a video online somewhere that demonstrates this. One arm washed with Technu and the other washed with regular dish soap and a wash cloth. The side with technu still had a reaction and the side where the wash cloth was used had no reaction at all.
The urishiol bonds to the skin and even though the technu is supposed to break the bond, only scrubbing with a cloth will actually remove the oil from the skin.
You can demonstrate this phenomenon by putting some car grease or oil on your skin and then trying to just wash it off with soap. Only agitation will remove the greas/oil.
Dawn dish detergent removes grease. I have been using it successfully for over a year to remove soot from a fire in my basement from many hard objects. I don’t think it works on fabric but it cuts the greasy soot residue on everything solid, from pots and pans to CD cases, wooden boxes and even jewelry.
Thank you so very much for this very needy article! I am very alergic to poison ivy and I have tried everything to get rid of this horrid stuff.
Goats are still my favorite method for eliminating poison ivy. You just have to be very careful not to love on their fur if they’ve been rubbing on the nasty vines.
Great article i write this as im covered head to toe in ivy blisters, i was burning brush piles and didn’t realize it was in there. No body part was spared, do not burn if you even suspect it. Trust me, i wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy.
Dean,
I feel for you, I too am very allergic and tread lightly around poison ivy now. But when I was younger I just trudged ahead and paid the price every time.
Rubbing alcohol!! After gardening, BEFORE you wash hands or gloves, soak/rinse them with rubbing alcohol and dry with paper towels. It dries up the oil and since I started using alcohol I’ve had no problem with Poison Ivy. I’m very allergic and the change has been amazing with the use of alcohol.
Deer eat it too! Horses and cows can eat it with no itchies. When your dog or cat romps in the poison ivy, he gets the oil on his fur, then when you pet him you have it on your hands. I like to wash with old fashioned Fels-Napha bar soap. Does a good job of getting the oil off.
Deer eat it too! Horses and cows help to keep it under control without any bad effects. I like to wash with Fels Napha laundry soap as soon as I can. Wear cheap tennis shoes and throw them in the washer with everything else.
Thanks Mike for the advice. I know my neighbor has it in her yard and broke out from it. I will tell her about the remedy…Janet
I try to pull out any new little vines I see when they’re tiny. When I see a new poison ivy plant while weeding or just strolling, I put a stake near it (not touching plant) so I can find it again. I have a few stakes w/ small bright ribbon tied to the top that I carry with my tools. When I’m ready to yank, I put a bread bag or newspaper bag (after verifying it doesn’t have any holes by blowing air into it) over my hand and arm and pull out the young shoots. Then carefully, I put my other hand inside the bag by my elbow and push the bag back down my arm, over my hand holding the poison ivy plants. Once the bag is “inside out”, I tie a knot in it and throw it in the trash barrel.
Jan,
Very cautious way of dealing with poison ivy. Smart too!
I have poison ivy wrapped around a hydrangea bush. How can I kill it without killing my beloved bush?
Wanda,
You have to find safe way to cut the vine at ground level first then treat new leaves as they appear. Or find somebody who is not allergic to remove it for you. See the bread bag comment posted here in the comments.
I’ve been trying to get rid of the poison ivy here for two years. I don’t want to spray poison, but I might just try that vinegar concoction. I have just been pulling it out, and like you said, it grows back.
Wow, thank you! I spent days ripping it out by the roots last year, and there will be more this year. Will try your vinegar recipe!
I call my sister that lives near me. She is not allergic to poison oak. she pulls it up by to roots and throws it on the ground, the sun kills it and no more poison oak. I had it every where. I sprayed it to kill it if it was on trees.
I am in Atlanta ga and we have lots of pretty green ivy climbing way up our trees. How can we know what will damage trees and therefore needs to be cut? Also, will this ivy damage the house/brick walls? Thank you very much, M
Melody,
I’ve growing up a brick wall becomes firmly anchored to the wall and the vines become quite large. It really can make a mess of a nice brick wall.
Mike, I need some guidance. My wife is terminally ill. Our family cuts down our Christmas tree early in December and HAVE to keep it around until my son’s birthday in early February. Last year I used a homemade preservative solution of bleach, vinegar, sugar and water and to our surprise there was new growth appearing on some of the upper branches when we were taking off the ornaments. This year the same thing happened. It inspires my wife that this is happening, so I tried to cut off some of the branches with new growth and dipped them in rooting solution and put them into potting soil that I keep moist (similar to what you suggest in some of your videos about rooting branches from bushes). They are in the kitchen in a window with lots of light, but many have not made it. Can you recommend anything that may help me start the remaining branches to root and start growing? I water every day and give a shot of food every few weeks. I know my wife would see this as a “sign” that this life in these branches of our Christmas tree will signal her situation getting better. Thanks for any suggestions. John
John,
This is difficult. Conifers are generally difficult to root from cuttings under the best of conditions. The cuttings that you are working with are already stressed because the tree has been cut for so long. You can try tenting the container to hold in moisture around the cuttings as you attempt to root them.
Rub the inside of a black walnut husk on the skin where the ivy is active.the skin will stain ( Temporary) but the ivy will be gone in less than 2 days. I keep a Qt.of husk in water and use the water when the nuts are not in season.
I can’t stand poison ivy. I just look at it and bust in to blisters.
Mike, I have the winter blues. I’m ready to get my misters out and start propergating clippings.
Chris
Solomon seal is an anecdote Usually found within 10 ft. of poison ivy. Rub a Solomon seal leaf over the contact point of the poison ivy
Soon Chris, soon! I’m raring to go as well.
There is poison ivy along our fence line and I’m having success with just 20% vinegar (which I had to buy online). I don’t have to heat it up or use salt or dish soap as long as I spray the plants while they’re sitting in the sun. I try to get out early in the day so they’re exposed to the vinegar and the sun for the longest amount of time possible. Usually when I check on them an hour or two after spraying the leaves, they’re already shriveled up and dying. The next day, they’re usually gone.
The thing is that since ivy can spread underground, I find that it will pop up a week later in an area a couple feet from the first sprig. I just try to keep an eye on the area and spray them as the leaves appear. Being sick for many years now, I haven’t been feeling well enough to eradicate the whole fence line of ivy but I hope to be able to do so this year. Persistence seems to pay off and I don’t have to use that nasty Roundup, which is polluting our entire planet because of its wide-spread agriculture and residential use.
Thanks for the information, Mike. 🙂
Mike say that “Vinegar, when diluted with a gallon of water makes a good fertilizer for acid-loving plants like azaleas, rhododendrons and blueberries. When mixed full strength with salt, it works very much like Round-Up. The dish soap helps the mixture to stick to the leaves.”
So maybe your just killing leaves like if you water it then sun hits it they burn.
Try adding the salt to kill the roots. then be done with it instead of going out and keep re applying the vinegar.
The dish soap acts as a surfactant–keeps the chemical (what ever you use) on the leaves a lot longer. Dawn seems to work best for me. 3T per gallon..stirred not shaken…worked for bond, works for me.. I tried the 20% vinegar and wasn,t happy with results. Switched to Ortho Tough Brush Killer, added dawn and spray from a laundry spray bottle . A little spray goes a long way.
When I was in high school (1957) a group of us were talking about smoking grapevine and how much it burned your tongue. Well there was a boy there junior to us who had never smoked a grapevine and wanted to know where he could find some. We told him to go to the woods and find a vine growing up into the trees, cut it between the joints, light one end and puff on it to get the smoke. He did not come back to school for over a month. He went out in the woods, found a vine (it did not have joints) and smoked it including inhaling the smoke. We never conciderd that he would cut down a dead poison ivy vine and smoke it,
Cannot agree more with the “Don’t burn it” recommendation. Just DON’T. If you are cutting firewood that has dead or dormant poison ivy vines on it, go to the next log. Really.
My Dad’s (luckily distant ) neighbor had that brilliant idea some years ago. He lived, but spent 7 very hellish months on a respirator in the ICU, on opiates.
Poison Ivy/Oak + Fire = Weapon of Mass Destruction. Be careful.