On home inspections I always watch for poison ivy.
And you have to! When people buy houses sometimes it is growing all over the siding and the sellers don't know! Someone buying the house can get in there, start ripping out the poison ivy and be rewarded with a huge problem in return! When I see it I point it out to my clients.
Some people aren't affected by it. I don't know what percentage that is, but most people are affected.
And there's poison oak and poison sumac* to look out for!
Poison ivy is a true ivy. It grows everywhere - on trees, on the ground, and on structures.
It has three equal, green leaves, often shiny. It can be a vine or a shrub.
If you see an ivy with a very thick and "hairy" root going up the side of the house or a tree, it is poison ivy.
The plant is very aggressive. It grows by sending out shoots (rhizomes) which can reattach elsewhere on the structure or tree, or grow underground to sprout up elsewhere.
If you see it, try to find the source and spray it there with an herbicide. Cutting it off does not solve the problem. You have to kill the roots.
The source is always in the ground
BUT
be careful! Even when it is dead and dried up it can still be dangerous!
The leaves are covered with an oil that will attach to skin or clothing. The oil can be spread from person to person, clothing to clothing, or even animal to human!
Once the oil bonds to the molecules of the skin YOU WILL HAVE POISON IVY, if you are susceptible.
If you think you may have touched poison ivy wash immediately. I have heard using everything from hot to cold water. But the main thing to wash with is dish washing soap. That soap is made to cut grease (oil) and will work well to remove the oil from your skin. Also, wash any clothing that may have touched it. Even your shoes and shoelaces.
Should you get a rash there is not much you can do. Scratching it can spread it! Don't break the little blisters or you WILL spread it! Poison ivy rashes love your eyes!
Reducing the size of blisters may help with the itching. Calamine lotion, alcohol, hydro-cortisone creams, cold compresses and even antihistamine pills can help with that. But expect to have the rash for a while, a couple of weeks or more, especially if you should spread it to other parts of your body. You might consider covering it to prevent touching it. My brother got it terribly every year and used to wear rubber gloves to bed!
My recommendation: knowledge is power. Familiarize yourself with its appearance! When seen avoid it! If you see it growing in your yard it is best to kill it while it is young. But killing it as soon as you see it is not too soon!
* Poison oak looks just like poison ivy, but has rounder leaves with softer points, and sometimes has small white berries. It grows everywhere poison ivy grows. Poison sumac is shrubby with small white berries. It has small branches with 7-13 thin, sharp leaves, and mostly thrives in swampy or boggy areas.
Jay Markanich Real Estate Inspections, LLC 
Based in Bristow, serving all of Northern Virginia.
Office (703) 330-6388 Cell (703) 585-7560
Good morning, Jay....that's nasty stuff, Jay..... stay clear is the answer....
I hate poison ivy. I'm very allergic, if there is such a term.
Nasty stuff can we say been there done that? thankfully I don't hove any at my home.
And it's everywhere Barbara! It is coming for you...
Debbie - some people are exceptionally allergic. The doctor said my brother had it in his blood!
James - good! Look out for it when you look at houses!
I've been highly allergic since I was about 12 years old after enhaling fumes. The city, D.C. was burning growth in a hillside at the reservoir on Channing St.
I was on medication for weeks and have been extremely sensitive since. I've had a few outbreaks since and have to take the dreaded steriods for treatment.
Needless to say, I watch out for the stuff with an eagle eye.
For one who loves the outdoors, it's a pain. I rarely fish from a bank anymore. Too risky. Give me a boat.
My brother is exceptionally allergic too Lenn. It's too bad to get it so severely. And the rashes last longer.
Jay, That stuff can be nasty to some. I do like he remedy of Alcohol, drink enough of it and you will not think of the poison ivy.
Jay, that is some nasty stuff. My Wife got it one year and it was a mess. Fortunately, I have never gotten the rash.
We have patches of it in our woods and up at the cabin. We stay away in droves.
Yikes! I hate poison ivy. I think I only had it once as a kid. I'm always careful not to touch the stuff.
Jay - Thanks for sharing this information. I really need to be able to recognize this stuff before I learn whether or not I am allergic to it. I never had an inspector mention this in an inspection. You are going the extra mile. Your clients are foruntae to have you as their inspector.
amazing that a plant can come up with a response specifically geared toward man that says ...leave me alone or else....I get it!
I remember poison Ivy as a kid living back east, we don't have it here in California. But we do have Poison Oak which has the same qualities Ja; it just looks a little different. It is that time of year.
Jay, this is a great post for this time of year! Many people think of poison ivy as a small plant growing next to a path in the woods. In reality it's everywhere... Sometmes you'll see it as a vine a couple inches thick climbing up a tree. Scary stuff. Not to be confused with Virginia Creeper which has five leaves and also climbs up trees!
Good Morning and this is some great advice!! keep up the good work and good luck with your business, E
Good reminder too watch out for this stuff. I started scratching just reading your post. I don't want to find out first hand about the effects of getting too close to poisonous plants!
Haven't seem it in awhile. but remember it from growing up. No easy way to cure it either. Guess I will stay out of the woods.
I dislike poison ivy and poison sumac. I wasn't allergic to sumac as a kid, but I am now!
Even burning sumac or ivy can infect people. I have an uncle who burning poison sumac and he actually got it in his throat and lungs. Beats me how, but that was the doctor's diagnosis.
Jay, It's pretty common on our turf. We have to watch for it around the treeline of our own home, and when showing homes we know to keep our eyes peeled. We've encountered a couple of homes you'd have thought they were cultivating it there was so much there. Bill
Awww Lenn...
Jay: I read this through and through! Great info and warnings!
In any case, we don't really see that here in Hawaii.....but I went to N.C. with my daughter and grandson (to await her husbands return from Afhanistan) this past January and I paid the next door neighbor to clear out the back. (my daughter and grandson came home for the previous year) He did a wonderful job and had a couple friends help him.
We didn't see him for a couple days after and my daughter went next door. OH MY...he had the rash from head to foot! It was in the cold of winter and way in the corner of the yard. He then told her he was allergic! Yup...it's all dried up and he didn't see the tiny patch in the corner! Poor guy!
Jay- even though I was a girl scout, I still have a hard time identifying poison ivy. My husband is very sensitive and has cream from his dermatologist. He is always traipsing around in the woods looking for his planes.
Applying white vinegar to the affected areas is also a big help in accelerating the drying process of the poision and reduces the itching.
Damn, now I can't get that song out of my head. Love The Coasters.
Jay: I, like many others here, am very sensitive to this dang stuff. If it's in the area, I catch it. I've heard you can even get it in your lungs if someone burns it. I've taken the steroids too often to count ... so am always on the lookout. Awful awful stuff!
Gene
Thanks for the reminder, Jay. It is insidious stuff - especially since it's still a problem after it is dead & when it is burned. It's all over our area.
Bruce
Jay, you are so right - best strategy is prevention! The cures don't really work very well and the healing process is extremely long, not to mention uncomfortable (as you can tell, I've been there!). Even your pets can bring in the oil on their fur and "infect" you, it's so powerful.
I am so allergic to poisen Ivy and I avoid it like the plague! Terrible plant! This is such a great reminder to be on the look out for it this time of year. It's miserable to have!
Good evening Jay. I am constantly on the look out for that stuff. I see it everywhere and avoid it with a passion.
I always watch for Poison Ivy, Poison Oak, and Poison Sumac.. any of those will "reach out and grab me" if I get anywhere near them. Poison Sumac affects me the worse.. with swelling and pain.
My neighbor's have Poison Ivy growing in their yard, right next to my fence. I've asked them nicely, I've sprayed through the fence ... but it keeps coming back. The only thing I can do is a) wait for new neighbors and b) keep it contained to their side of the fence which is not an easy task.
Somehow poison ivy always found me in Georgia, one thing I don't miss about Georgia.
Poison ivy would be a bad thing to have growing on one's house or in the yard. We have poison oak, but I wouldn't recognize poison ivy and would definitely appreciate having you or my agent point it out if I were a buyer.
Jay, I am so allergic to the stuff that just reading this is making me want to scratch!
Thanks for this very informative post. I think I'll skip the poison ivy.
Don - yeah, but you have to stay that way for a long time!
Some do, some don't Mike. I don't think I do, but I'm not testing it!
Don - yep, stay away any way you can!
A&J - sometimes you can touch it with clothing without realizing it. And THEN get it!
Thanks Stacey. I mention it every time I see it. As a Scoutmaster I have to be helpful!
I get it too Richie. We try to make sure the boys recognize it the first day of summer camp, so they don't end up with it in a couple of days!
Oak might even be more aggressive Tom. And you are right, CA is not a state that has poison ivy.
Sometimes people point to Creeper and ask me if it's poison ivy Tom.
E&T - it is good advice! Thanks.
They are everywhere Christi and looking for YOU!
Bill - once contracted it is there period. Most people actually make it worse.
Probably by asking questions Than. But yes, you can ingest the smoke.
Some people actually do Bliz, without realizing that's what they are growing!
Good to hear that Sally - you'll do better on the pop quiz! Contracting it the way your neighbor did is very common!
Kathy - the creams do little, just shrink the blisters. It's easy to identify - three equal leaves, smooth edges, shiny, and very green.
Randy - white vinegar seems to do so many things!
Sorry you went to the song Joe! In that song, do you know what "poison ivy" is a metaphor for?
Gene - once you have it, you have it! Inside and out!
It's spring Bruce. I thought I would get out my annual poison ivy post.
Olga - that is true. I mention pets in the post. And clothing!
Kalene - you are right to watch out. Uncomfortable is a meager word compared to the suffering.
You have there what we have here Michael. I see it in many properties!
Judi - they are looking for you and will find you at the least expected moment. Dress to the 9s.
Andrea - from a distance see if you can locate the roots that come from the soil (likely there are many). And spray there. It may take a couple of tries.
Pete - the rhizomes are following you underground even now. Just wait.
Lottie - it's similar enough to poison oak that it doesn't matter. Look for the three, equal leaves.
Check your yard and the side fences carefully Pat. Willie can bring you a gift.
What do you have against a nice green salad Joan?
Thank you for the post. I know I am allergic to poison ivy but can't identify it so I stay away from all weeds.
Por nada, Gita. Look at the close up photo in the post and avoid THAT plant!
Hey, Jay! I included this post in today's Last Week's Favorites. Have a great Memorial Day weekend.
Hi Jay,
It is bad stuff and I do avoid it like the plague! When I was little I was very susceptible and had weekly shots in the summer...not fun!!!
If it is in your yard, and you have dogs, you also have to be very careful, because they can bring it in on their coat.
Thanks Pat! Always a pleasure to be there.
Yikes Dorie! Must have been steroid shots.
That's true Lori. I said that in the post because I know people who have gotten it that way.
That sounds like experience talking. How much did it hurt Jay?
It's the experience of a Scoutmaster, Robert. I have never gotten it. My brother got it terribly year after year though.
I grew up with Poison Ivy in Conn---have yet to see it out here. If you burn the stuff and enhale the smoke it can actually kill you if you get it inside your lungs.
There are a few comments about burning it Charlie, but you haven't seen it because it is waiting for the prime opportunity to reach out and get you.
Check your six.
Poison ivy waiting in the woods behind and under things to jump out when hikers go by Laura. It is sneaky stuff.
Dear Jay -
Just yesterday I had to teach the folks who were house-hunting with me what it was. They had never seen poison ivy before.
Have a happy day -
Lynn
Excellent Lynn! You were able to help them! That's being a good neighbor!
Jay,
Thank you for such a great piece of information!
An interesting thing that I personally learned....you can not be affected by one type, and STILL be by another! My sister was terribly allergic to poison ivy,getting it every summer as a kid but not me. Then, I volunteered to help clean our local park and was severely affected by poison oak. And that was at the age of 40 something! Ended up on prednisone, prescribed after he saw my condition (it was ALL OVER) and used the word "impressive" when he saw it....not exactly a look I was going for!
How wonderful when the doctor says that Gayle! You must have been on steroids for a while.
As children, we were taught the poem, "Leaves of three; let it be." I'm immune to the stuff, but I remember my stepbrother being covered with a red rash after getting into a patch of it. He was itching like crazy!
I remember that one too Fred. Then there's, "Don't bend over in the garden Grandma, thems taters got eyes!"
Thanks for this descriptive post. It is my hope that I will never encounter poison ivy! I never thought about the oil spreading from person to person.
Sharon - I thought one of the first things we learn is to share. As hard as sharing is to learn though, why is it that sharing poison ivy is so easy?