Gardening & Landscaping
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Poison Ivy Galore

We are putting up a new fence and found a TON of poison ivy behind/under our shed.  The second problem is the neighbors shed is fairly close to ours, but on the other side of the fence and they have even more poison ivy than we do around & growing out of theirs.  Does anyone have any helpful ideas/tips on what to do?

H has cut what he could of it but it is even intertwined in their chain link fence, which is not coming down.   We bought lots of poison ivy killer and sprayed the crap out of everything, including what we could reach of the neighbors.  But I read even after the poison ivy is "dead" the oils are still there and can last up to 5 years.  H has been back in it today to set the posts but wore long clothing.  He took off the clothing and washed it right away but  I am fully expecting us to have a poison ivy outbreak because I feel like no matter what precautions we take, its unavoidable to come in contact with it with this project.  I had a very bad reaction the last time I came in contact with it and am freaking out!

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Re: Poison Ivy Galore

  • I don't know how well it works, but would this help? http://www.amazon.com/Tecnu-Extreme-Medicated-Poison-Scrub/dp/B0007IOVZK/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1335906593&sr=8-4 

    Also, is it an area you can blowtorch? That might be best, because you don't have to touch it to clear it.  

    image

    "The meek shall inherit the earth" isn't about children. It's about deer. We're all going to get messed the fuckup by a bunch of cloned super-deer.- samfish2bcrab

    Sometimes I wonder if scientists have never seen a sci-fi movie before. "Oh yes, let's create a super species of deer. NOTHING COULD POSSIBLY GO WRONG." I wonder if State Farm offers a Zombie Deer Attack policy. -CaliopeSpidrman
  • imagepdxmouse:

    I don't know how well it works, but would this help? http://www.amazon.com/Tecnu-Extreme-Medicated-Poison-Scrub/dp/B0007IOVZK/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1335906593&sr=8-4 

    Also, is it an area you can blowtorch? That might be best, because you don't have to touch it to clear it.  

    Our neighbors informed us we cannot burn it as the fumes are extremely toxic and can get your lungs/bloodstream.  Well H decided to burn all the other brush that was pulled out of there, separating out the poison ivy and I've been worried he missed some and burned some.  None of us have had symptoms yet but that is just another thing I'm worrying about because it can take 5 days to develop.  This is such a horrible plant!

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  • Oh, god. I wasn't thinking about fumes. Yikes. Yeah. After you clear you might try sheet mulching/lasagnaing to help keep it from coming back. (Lay down newspaper or cardboard and put 4-6 inches of bark chips over that.)
    image

    "The meek shall inherit the earth" isn't about children. It's about deer. We're all going to get messed the fuckup by a bunch of cloned super-deer.- samfish2bcrab

    Sometimes I wonder if scientists have never seen a sci-fi movie before. "Oh yes, let's create a super species of deer. NOTHING COULD POSSIBLY GO WRONG." I wonder if State Farm offers a Zombie Deer Attack policy. -CaliopeSpidrman
  • Yes, please....as someone who is highly allergic to PI and who has been hospitalized three times since December because of the neighbor's burning, please do not burn PI.  Those with such severe allergies sometimes don't even know that people are burning and, by the time we step outside, to take the dog for a walk, empty the trash or get the mail...it's too late. 

    As for us (well, DH) he has to use a heavy duty brush killer as it's the only thing that will really take care of the problem.  Good luck and thanks for not burning!

  • Oh, and if you do end up with an outbreak, this stuff works great to dry up the rash and really stop the itching: http://www.naturespoisonivyrelief.com/

    If you are really bad off, see your physician as you may require treatment with prednisone.

  • imagelexus192:

    Yes, please....as someone who is highly allergic to PI and who has been hospitalized three times since December because of the neighbor's burning, please do not burn PI.  Those with such severe allergies sometimes don't even know that people are burning and, by the time we step outside, to take the dog for a walk, empty the trash or get the mail...it's too late. 

    As for us (well, DH) he has to use a heavy duty brush killer as it's the only thing that will really take care of the problem.  Good luck and thanks for not burning!

    How long did your symptoms take to show when you inhaled it?  And what exactly were they?  I've been really worried that its possible the oils were on some of the plants H did burn.  He said he was very careful to not throw any of the PI in the fire but I cant help but be over cautious. 

    We will continue to spray LOTS of brush killer on it for the next week or so and then I guess we will try lying something down to smother the dead plants. It is coming from under the shed and we have no way to get under there.  I'm so stressed out about how much was back there.  I had a really terrible reaction that lasted a long time when I came in contact with it before.

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  • There is a product called Ivy Block that you put on before heading into poison ivy territory that prevents the oils from coming into contact with your skin.  It works pretty well--at least my husband has had no outbreaks after fighting our poison ivy.
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  • I am, thankfully, one of those who does not have an extreme systemic reaction/lung inflammation.  Honestly, life threatening!  For me, I blister until I bleed...the smallest amount of oils spread throughout the air will cover any skin that is exposed. For Christmas last year, my eyes were swollen shut, my face was one large blister and my hands were so swollen I couldn't prepare Christmas dinner. All because of that walk to the mailbox...no kidding! Thankfully, it was winter so the rest of me was bundled up!
  • junojuno member
    1000 Comments Combo Breaker
    If you do notice swelling, if you will bathe in Dawn dishsoap immediately, that might prevent an outbreak.  I volunteered with our local Parks dept. last year and got into some poison oak and started swelling immediately.  The parks supervisor had me bathe the areas with Dawn and hot water, and the swelling immediately went away and I never had any skin breakdown.  I haven't tried it with poison ivy, but the idea with both is to get the oil off your skin ASAP, so I bet it would work with both.
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  • RoundUp's poison ivy spray is all that I use.  It works for me.  And I know it is nowhere near "green"....but I have a short list of "evil plants" that I don't let near my yard!  My biggest concern w/ PI is the dog bringing it home, or in the tent when camping!  Because I watch where I walk, but I can't watch were she walks....I know dogs don't react from it....but they can still bring the oils home for us humans to get.  :(

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  • DH has extreme reactions to PI.  We have a ton of it in our side yard and we have been working on removing it.  This year we ended up renting a mini excavator and literally tore up the entire area.  We are getting topsoil and planting grass over the area.
    ~after 34 cycles we finally got our 2nd little bundle of joy~
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  • I'm not familiar with PI, but around here we have poison oak which (as far as I know) is similar. One way people get rid of it is to rent goats. Apparently they'll eat the stuff, and aren't harmed by it. A goat or two can clear out a whole yard. I don't know if that would work with poison ivy, but it could be worth looking into. You might not want to do that if you've put out a lot of chemicals though.  

    Happily Married on 07.07.07 Mom to 3: Ruby 11/08 and Oliver & Austin 12/11
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