Safely removing Poison Ivy
Last year I remember seeing some poison ivy in my yard, and I'd like to find a way to get rid of it. It was along my back fence, so no plants that I need to worry about, except grass. I've heard you can pour bleach on it to kill the roots. Does that work? If not, any other suggestions would be appreciated.
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rainbowgardener
- Super Green Thumb
- Posts: 25279
- Joined: Sun Feb 15, 2009 6:04 pm
- Location: TN/GA 7b
Poison ivy is a pain! I already have my first poison ivy rash for the season. It was the last thing I still used Round-Up on, after I quit using it any where else. Depending on your philosophy, some people think glyphosate (the active ingredient in R-U; if you are going to use it, get the glyphosate and avoid some of the other bad stuff in R-U that is labelled as "inert ingredients") is one of the least bad herbicides, with a relatively fast breakdown time.
But I did quit using it. One organic option is a solution of dish detergent and horticultural vinegar. Or you can torch it or pour boiling water on it. Or you can get all suited up in haz-mat gear (long sleeves taped to your gloves, long pants taped to your boots, etc) and just dig it out and bag it up for trash pick up. Just be careful how you take the gloves off afterwards and probably buy some cheap pairs that you can throw in the trash with the ivy.
Incidentally if you have out of the way corners where you can leave it, aside from its unfortunate effects on human beings, poison ivy is actually a nice native plant:
But this plant, a native, has considerable value to wildlife, which generally are not sensitive to its toxin, called urushiol. Poison ivy’s clusters of round, waxy, whitish fruits develop in summer and persist into winter, when they are of particular benefit to wildlife because of the scarcity of other foods at that season. At least 60 species of birdsâ€â€including all of Maryland’s game birds and many songbirdsâ€â€are reported to eat the fruits.
https://www.sycamoreisland.org/articles/sa200009.htm
But I did quit using it. One organic option is a solution of dish detergent and horticultural vinegar. Or you can torch it or pour boiling water on it. Or you can get all suited up in haz-mat gear (long sleeves taped to your gloves, long pants taped to your boots, etc) and just dig it out and bag it up for trash pick up. Just be careful how you take the gloves off afterwards and probably buy some cheap pairs that you can throw in the trash with the ivy.
Incidentally if you have out of the way corners where you can leave it, aside from its unfortunate effects on human beings, poison ivy is actually a nice native plant:
But this plant, a native, has considerable value to wildlife, which generally are not sensitive to its toxin, called urushiol. Poison ivy’s clusters of round, waxy, whitish fruits develop in summer and persist into winter, when they are of particular benefit to wildlife because of the scarcity of other foods at that season. At least 60 species of birdsâ€â€including all of Maryland’s game birds and many songbirdsâ€â€are reported to eat the fruits.
https://www.sycamoreisland.org/articles/sa200009.htm
There are a few places around our house where this stuff loves to grow, but happens to be in and around other plants I love. Luckily, a friend of my son's has a landscape business and he is not at all alergic to the stuff. He stops by at the beginning of the season and tears any out he sees, doesn't even wear gloves! So that's my solution...a non-alergic friend !
Yeah, I used to be that non-allergic friend. Ends up, I'm not anymore... I woke up yesterday morning with a rash all over my face, arms, legs, and, um, certain more sensitive areas... 
And I even used gloves and long pants and everything... Now I'm figuring that since I already have it, I might as well finish the rest of it up, but it hurts to walk atm, so I think I'll have to wait until the medication my doctor gave me starts to work... *crys*
And I even used gloves and long pants and everything... Now I'm figuring that since I already have it, I might as well finish the rest of it up, but it hurts to walk atm, so I think I'll have to wait until the medication my doctor gave me starts to work... *crys*