Poison Ivy, UGH.

spox · Jun 7, 2008

I moved into a new house with a barn and paddocks. This is the first summer and have found hundreds of yards of poison ivy.

I am highly allergic and am trying to find out how best to get rid of it. I am going to spray it with herbocide, but how do i rip it out? I have a kubota 2630.

ragkar · Jun 8, 2008

It sounds like you have a heck of a problem. If i were you, the first thing I'd fetch is some first aid help for poison ivy. The problem with ivy is in the oils and oils don't wash off very well with ordinary soap. Zanfel, which is very expensive but can be found in CVS and other pharmacies, is highly recommended by many. And Fels-Naptha soap which is inexpensive but hard to find in grocery stores is suppose to be good.
I don't think that us amateurs can help you much but luckily there's a lot of help on the web. I recommend going to
Poison Ivy, Oak, and Sumac Information Center - (www.poisonivy.us)
and also
Getting RID of Poison Ivy - Woodlands Forum - GardenWeb

Whatever you do, don't burn it and walk in the smoke. If you do, you will be going to the hospital.
Worse case scenario, happened to my uncle, burn it, walk in the smoke, then go inside to relieve yourself and handle your tool.

rdsaustintx · Jun 8, 2008

ragkar said:
Worse case scenario, happened to my uncle, burn it, walk in the smoke, then go inside to relieve yourself and handle your tool.

Ouch. I have also read about campers grabbing the greenest leaves they see to use for toilet paper. What a way to go, if ya get my drift.

Yeah the stuff is deadly and persistent. I have been walloped bad enough to shut my eyes and get cortisone shots. The meanest part is that you don't develop any resistance, you actually get MORE sensitive every time you're affected. You do NOT want to shred the plants with a mower or brush hog, that's almost as deadly as burning it.

We have removed a lot of poison ivy and tried every herbicide known to man. Round-Up and Ortho will make it wilt, but the plants don't die. My current property had some vines as big around as your arm.

The only method we have found that actually works is physical eradication. Literally tearing it out by the roots. Every little bitty piece left in the ground will turn into a new plant the following spring. Very tenacious stuff. We dress like astronauts, pull and bag it. Then wash the clothes and throw gloves away. Always wind up with rashes anyway.

If you do find an effective herbicide, please let us know. But I'm telling ya it's not the part above ground that has to be eliminated. The root has to go.

Russell in BubbaLand

CurlyDave · Jun 8, 2008

Actually Round Up works on my place, but you have to be persistent. Apply every two weeks. You can go through an area where you thought you got all the plants, and they will all be wilted, but two weeks later a bunch of new ones have sprung up. Spray them and keep going back.

The next year there will be fewer plants, but it will still be back. Spray again every two weeks. By the third year the problem will be manageable.

Technu puts out some good products that work well for me to clean the oils off my skin. If I spray for a few hours and then come inside, shower with Technu and change my clothes I usually do not get a rash.

Wash your clothes in before you put them on again. Do not touch your privates until after the shower.

CurlyDave · Jun 8, 2008

One more thing.

Consider moving to a higher altitude. Poison Oak does not grow above about 4000 feet.

Skyco · Jun 8, 2008

Lots threads about PI here on TBN.
Round-up seems to work somewhat for me, but Round-up with some triclopyr added works great, they sell it as Round Up Poison Ivy Killer. You can mix your own cheaper though. Buy generic Round up, know as glyphosate and if you can find the triclopyr as a generic or it is also known as Ortho Weed-b-Gon for Chickweed/Clover/Oxalis.

BTW dead poison ivy will still get you for a couple of years so keep that in mind.

spox · Jun 8, 2008

Thanks all for the comments... I just walking around the property again to ponder what to do. Some of the leaves come off vines going up the trees. Vines are about 3 inches thick. How do you kill those?

The sprayer I have can't reach most of the ivy, so I need to find a higher psi sprayer so i dont need to wade into the stuff.

dillo99 · Jun 8, 2008

i have lots myself and I have gotten pretty used to it. I use round-up with success but you have to be very persistent. It sometimes takes several applications. Also, if you have PI vines growing on your trees (i have lots of vines), make sure you cut them at the base and kill them early. Birds love the berries that grow on the vines and they spread seeds far and wide.

To protect yourself, the best bet is to wash right after you think you have come into contact. After I work around the ivy I use dishwashing soap to wash with (it has grease and oil cutters). I keep a bottle of Dawn in the shower at all times. This works great!

There are lotions you can use BEFORE you go into the woods that help as well. They are very thick and they basically prevent the oils from even reaching your skin. These work pretty well but they are very sticky and thick. Not much fun to put on your skin on a 90 degree day.

Good Luck!

ray66v · Jun 8, 2008

24 hrs after first contact, as the first bumps appear, if you scrub the affected area with a mechanics hand cleaner and a white plastic scrub pad until it is raw. You will remove the top layer of skin the oil has bonded too and that ends the allergic reaction.

I used to be very allergic, using this technique, I no longer have outbreaks.
So far when others have used it properly, (you need to be aggressive with the scrubbing), it has worked for them also.

Captinjack · Jun 8, 2008

Goats absolutely love to eat poison ivy. In the right situation, you simply tether the goat in an area and they will eat it all. This is done all the time in WV and loaner goats go for about 15$ each. No chemicals and very little upkeep. They get all the water they need from the plants to boot! Within a fenced in area, the poison ivy will be eradicated.

MikeInEburg · Jun 8, 2008

The best way to kill the 3'' vine is to cut it with saw then immediately spray stump with high concentration of Roundup (Glysophate).
I agree with others, persistent attention with mowing and herbicide will reduce the problem in a year or two. Long pants, long sleeves, boots, gloves and coveralls will keep you safe.
Mike

spox · Jun 8, 2008

Hmmm, goats... where can I get a goat? Any goat dealers around Harvard, mA? I wonder if they would get along with the horses.

ragkar · Jun 8, 2008

I was just thinking about that zanfel soap that I suggested. As I recall, at $40 each it's mighty expensive, but I'd pay more when I have the itch. I haven't used it, but I read that it's also effective after the problems start. It's much better to get the oil off before they do. I have an unused bar in my medicine cabinet.
As far as off-the-shelf medicines, forget calamine lotion. Go for hydrocortisone. The relief begins immediately, but it doesn't really kick in until a half hour after you use it.
If you get running sores, I strongly recommend a wet bandage of 'Domoboro astringent solution' (also called Burow's solution). It's non-prescription and found in pharmacies though you might have troubles finding it.

MikeInEburg · Jun 8, 2008

If you could arrange goats - they would be a GREAT solution! They'll get it under control in very short order. Environmentally friendly and goat-burgers when they're finished.
Mike

Skyco · Jun 8, 2008

I sure wouldn't cut a 3" PI vine with a power saw, unless you like spraying the itchy juice everywhere. Might be able to do it very carefully with a hand saw... I had some like that I cut by running into them head on with the FEL edge and severing them. Then saturate the stump left with the aforementioned brush killer. The part up the tree will die on it's own. Just remember to never cut down that tree for firewood for at least 10 years

spox · Jun 8, 2008

Here is the update: Ordered a professional sprayer online that will spray far enough so I dont need to get into the ivy. I am going to take your suggestion of using the FEL to damage the vine and then spray them. Just nervous about getting the oil on the tractor

I guess I can power wash it after. I should take a photo... i just cant beleive how much ivy there is.

Scrounger · Jun 8, 2008

I have experienced both ivy and oak to the point I needed to have shots and pills to get better. Do no burn it since if you are real sensitive you may get it in your lungs from the smoke. Doctor told me that one.

I removed about 75 feet of it but cutting the main root, which was about 5" in diameter and then spraying the open root with some nasty stuff from the farm store in town.

I hear goats are awesome also since they will eat any leaf close to the ground and then start on the stem.

The best time to pull it down is winter however since you would have cloths and gloves on and the oils do get thicker in the cold making it less likely to have it over you. I was so messed up since I (1) did not know I was allergic to it, (2) was sweating like a pig which spread it all over and finally (3) I was swiping my face with the shirt which was COVERED in the oils.

Good luck. I'd just move personally.

BotaBigot · Jun 8, 2008

spox said:
I wonder if they would get along with the horses.

Goats make good companions for horses. But there is a downside to having them...they're jumpers and climbers and can be hard to keep in...

mc faulkner · Jun 8, 2008

I also had a huge patch of poison Ivy - I used a broduct called Brush B Gon by Ortho - use it in a spayer - also kills blackberries, bitter sweet and many other hard to kill plants. It killed the poison Ivy and everything in with it - it is a dead zone one year later....which is better than the poison IVY. tough stuff, but it will get rid of your poison ivy. I would use it again if I had as much as thick as I had it.