I didn't take any pictures, but the poison Ivy here is starting to take off. I spent a couple hours spraying it with herbicide I put in a windex bottle. Thanks again for helping me figure out what it is and what it isn't. I now have a good feel for finding it and leaving everything else alone. Feel like I can control the application OK that way with the spray bottle. Tried a brush and sponge, but it took too long. I have some interesting areas where the vines are thick and come well out of the ground in areas. Most of it was sprayed liberally a couple times last year and some of it is putting out new leaves again this year. I can tell there is less than there would be if it had gone unchecked. Seriously, it was like someone was growing it as a crop around the property. Some areas in particular where 10 by 10 or 10 by 15, that was just thick. Maybe 10 areas or so like this. I can tell nothing really that looks like poison Ivy is coming up in these spots, but around the edges I am finding the plant hopefully, gasping for its life and putting a few leaves out, as I squirt Triclopyr right in its eye.
I hope that helps! Such a bummer it got to that point, and I think I would go after something like that with chemical warfare, though I don't own or use any chems for gardening. You can't maintain control until you first gain control. Many of the vines may be connected under ground, could be just a few massive vines. People also kill stubborn vines by gathering a bunch of the tips and sticking them in a jar of (forget the name of the chemical in roundup.) That stuff works by being absorbed by the leaves, and if they 'drink' it for a few days, a lot more can be moved all the way through the plant, hopefully delivering a lethal dose to the roots. Putting a plastic bag over the whole setup will keep rain out, and help you notice/remember where the jars are, sounds like you'd definitely need a few. This method also uses only the exact amount needed for death (though sometimes needs to be repeated on new shoots if the first dose isn't lethal) and keeps the chemicals off of the ground. Dig a little hole to sit the jar in, so it stays upright. Using parts that are in the most sunlight should be the most effective. Hot temps help too. Probably more tips on the label, following all of them will help you use the product most effectively. A double-pronged attack using both spray and 'drink' may help you kill this monster more quickly. You'll want to patrol vigilantly for the next few years, for new sprouts. Surely this big old vine dropped many seeds in previous years. You can put a plastic bag over your hand/arm, pull the sprout, then use the other hand to pull the bag over/around the sprout, tie shut, put in dumpster, wash right away just to make sure.
yea, my wife is her own worst enemy. she dug up a bunch of vines/roots of her own accord, and was surprised when I mentioned she might get poison ivy; 2 weeks later still has a rash and I've heard how horrible it is every day at nauseum. Yesterday, she gets her garden tools, the ones she used to cut all the vines and roots with and looks at me and asks, do you think I should wash these? I said you're a fool not to - and she proceeded to use them without washing them. The only reason I didn't give her a hard time about giving herself a horrible poison ivy infection, is she managed to contract stomach flu at the same time. It was sort of too pathetic to criticize. She's funny, she'll worry about a touch of the oil on a sneaker or coming in with the cat, but then basically roll around in the vines for a few hours, and act surprised when she blows out into a world championship quality rash. I am sort of laughing to myself as I write this ... I've used roundup and Triclopyr. The roundup seemed to just burn off the leaves, and work faster, but I think the Triclopyr takes longer to act, but gets sucked into the roots more. I very much like that drink idea. I have some areas where there are a bunch of vines I could basically stick into a canning jar filled with the herbicide and let them have their fill. I get sort of a sick pleasure of of spraying the leaves by hand I'll have to admit. I think the Triclopyr is also more selective, so a little overspray isn't the end of the world. A lot of the Ivy is wound around areas where there are ferns and a lot of other plants I like. so the selective nature of the Triclopyr makes sense. I actually sprayed it heavily on a few ferns last year to see what would happen and the didn't blink an eye at it. got some pictures this afternoon. the very young sprouts seem reddish. this is what it looks like after it is fully leafed out. this is poison ivy, no? ( photo / image / picture from film495's Garden ) this is one of my patches. most of the low growth here is poison ivy. last year I could not even get to this spot to treat it. ( photo / image / picture from film495's Garden ) sprayed a couple days ago. you can see this appears to be wilting out already. I'll probably keep spraying it every week or 2 until I can't find it any more. ( photo / image / picture from film495's Garden )
An excellent home remedy for poison ivy is to crush the stems of the jewel weed and rub the liquidy residue all over the rash when you first notice it. It works wonders.
No matter how you kill the poison ivy plant, the urushiol in the plant does not go away.It will stay viable for at least 4 years. Garden tools, i.e. rakes, shovels, anything that touches poison ivy, shoes or boots used around poison ivy even clothes can retain the oil for years after the oil has been transferred. From personal experience, never touch a poison ivy vine in the dead of winter. Who wants to itch as the snow covers the plants. A last word, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER burn poison ivy plants, it is the quickest way to end up in the hospital in SERIOUS condition from inhaling smoke laced with urushiol. Jerry
I see that you're in NH, but for the life of me, that first pic you just posted looks like kudzu. I don't think that's possible, maybe someone will recognize it. Your wife is lucky to have you, the PI slayer! It sounds like she really wants to garden so badly. I hope she feels better soon. She could get a cortisone shot, but you've probably already discussed that. The last time I had genuine PI about 30 years ago, it was bad, alllllll over. After getting a shot, I felt better the next day, and was finally able to sleep. In her defense though, I had mystery rashes, in small but extremely irritating 'batches' more often than not for a long time before finally realizing it wasn't PI, and wasn't just one plant giving me a rash. But did I stop what I was doing? Nope - just complained to DH constantly - "how do I keep getting PI? It's SO ITCHY!" At least y'all KNOW it is PI and are working to fix the issue. I haven't given up the plants that irritate me, just have a new policy to not get any plant sap on me at all. Since going by that rule, no more rashes. On the upside, looks like you'll have some nice large areas for 'real gardens' when you get this weed situation under control. Agreed, killing a plant you hate is very satisfying. Cheering you on!
I have no idea what kudzu looks like, but it does grow this far north... I saw an article in the paper about it here, but it isn't everywhere here, though. Maybe you should take a photo of your plant to the extension office of your county and ask if they can ID it for you.
film495--I have had good luck spraying poison ivy once in the spring as leaves emerge. I had to do it 2 years running & what I have left I can easily pull using trash bags. The only thing though is that where I sprayed little is growing. AND I was careful about only spraying the leaves, not the soil. So, just keep in mind that you may have trouble growing things for a year or two where you have sprayed.
I think I'm going to skip pulling it up. I honestly think pulling it would mean digging up about 1/2 acre of property which isn't realistic. I think I'm fine with just spraying it and letting the chemical and time do it's work. I'm using a selective herbicide. The ferns seem not to mind it at all and I know I've sprayed it on a few other things that seem not to be bothered as well. I do once in a while spray the wrong plant, but I try not to - but it is just collateral damage as I see it. The best way I found was to mix it into an old windex bottle, and then just try to spray it on the leaves directly. It is sort of tedious, but addictive work.
