Poison ivy on a load of logs

[stillhunter]

I hope you didn't pay for it?

If you did, I'd want my money back and the logs removed. You can't burn that stuff the smoke will kill sensitive people.

I get that crap so bad I'll have nothing to do with it except cut a climbing vine (clean loppers with soapy bleach after) and spray that and smaller with herbicide, then let it rot.

DO NOT BURN, THE SMOKE CAN PUT YOU IN CCU with inflammation of LUNGS

When I was a kid a new neighbor from the city saw a snake slip into the brush/green poison ivy vines is his back yard by a deep creek bank in summer. He put gas on the brush and burned it all down one day. The next day a ambulance came to his house and rolled him out on a stretcher. I saw him and his head looked like a red pumpkin, fat and round. He was in the hospital for weeks or a month and when he came home he stayed inside for more than month and after that he only went to work a few days a week. To add to his misery the burnt creek bank started to cave into the creek and huge chunks of his yard collapsed into the creek. About year later the family moved away.

 

[AVB]

You definitely don't to burn it.

I have had severe out breaks caused by it. When I was a kid we boys dug a cave in a sand dune out in Salinas, CA. We all three was nearly hospitalize because of it. And about 15 yrs old I cutting firewood from push up trees. I saw no signs of it around but by week later both of my arms looked like I was scalded. Very Very painful to deal during the hot summer months. And I had friends hospitalized from inhaling the smoke off brush piles.

 

[Mad Professor]

That is just ignorant. Really, really stupid.
1. The vines are already cut, and will not regrow. At all.
2. Kerosene won't do anything but preserve the vine from drying out. It will also increase the probability of spreading the urushiol by any casual contact with the vines. Urushiol is an oil, and kerosene will dissolve the oil in the plant and act as a carrier of the antigenic oil to anything that rubs against the vine.
3. As has been mentioned previously, burning the vines is hazardous to the health of someone allergic. Soaking in kerosene won't do anything to mitigate that risk. If you can wait for the log to dry out enough for the bark to fall off, it should be easy after a year or two to use a tool to pry off the bark and then throw it into a compost pile, or even burn it. Make SURE you throw the vine covered bark on a healthy fire, and then leave before you get exposed to any smoke from the vines. Upwind with gloves, hold your breath, and you'll be fine.
4. The vines are attached very firmly to the bark of a tree, especially the big vines at the base of the tree. If you are highly allergic, attempting to pull the vines off with pliers of some sort would be futile and very risky.
5. No one has mentioned being watchful for the seeds germinating. Anywhere that mature seeds have dropped, you should consider treating with a pre-emergent herbicide, or remaining watchful in the future and spraying emerging vines with a brush killer.

I have a suggestion for you highly allergic guys. Purchase a homeopathic product called Rhus-tox. These are little more than sugar pills with a minute quantity of the antigen that causes the rash. By swallowing very low doses on a daily basis, you can become immune to the poison ivy (or other plants that contain urusiol, including mangoes). It is available in a variety of concentrations. I recommend starting out with the weak stuff, and getting stronger with time.

The advertising for the Rhus-tox won't mention it as a treatment for poison ivy allergy abatement. That would be a medical treatment, for which it is not FDA approved. But it does work that way for a lot of people. Over the years, I have gotten quite a few of my guys so that they have only minor or no reaction to working in the vines.

Myself, I've always been immune. I did string trim a giant vine once while wearing shorts. My bare legs were completely green with the juices off the vine. I worked a whole day, and washed it off at the end of the day. I wasn't worried, 'cause I'm immune, right? I never got a rash, but legs itched like hell for a week.

I've done thus.

LKiil at aoon as you see it. Small even 3 leaf.

Poison sumac is only found on the west coast, I believe.

Those tangy sumac berries are a very popular middle eastern spice. The local "Lebanese" restaurant keeps it in shakers on the tables.

I put Lebanese in quotes because they are actually Palestinian. They just don't want their customers to fear getting bombed. Palestinians aren't generally well thought of in the USA.​

Wrong sumac is here. The north east USA. Seen it , got it (before I seen it).

Only really marshy lands. Kill that crap too.

 

[Mad Professor]

Maybe I was confusing that with the western poison oak. It seems likely, after reviewing your splendid map.

Speaking of poison oak: You might be amazed how many of my employees have argued with me about the cause of their rash & blisters. It seems that the local doctors are fond of telling them they have a poison oak rash, and that serves for them as good an ID as a plant taxonomist. We have absolutely no poison oak in this part of the state.

It just irritates me how putting a "Dr." in front of your name makes you an expert at everything in this world, despite a complete lack of training in some subjects that they make pronouncements on.

We have poison ivy oak and sumac, northeast USA.

Buy me some gloves, pay shipping, and I'll send you some sprouts.

 

[blades]

flipping PI PO or PS oils do not burn in a fire it vaporises. Carries on the wind long after all the smoke clears . MY Ma would get it huge big welts, me I get what amounts to a case of heat rash head to toe. i do not seem to have any problem with less virulent plants such as ginko trees, but the wild mustard or that lace whatever and stinging nettles cause reactions as well.

 

[pdqdl]

I just laugh at the stinging nettles. I think they tickle. Other guys... not so much.

 

[husqvarna257]

The last few years I never had it. Previous to that I got it al the time, pets bringing it in etc. I used to get a rash from fresh oak. I am at the mercy of whatever log length I get. As others have said dish detergent is the best to wash it off. I looked it up once and only the plant oil can spread it to others. Now that I say I didn't get it next spring and a new load of wood I'll be calling the doctor for prednisone.

 

[SS396driver]

Never got it been with people in the woods touching the same wood and equipment they come down with it me nothing . But I do remove it and toss the vine in the woods or in the compost pile. By the time I get to the wood to process most of the bark has become loose and falls off

 

[barebunns]

my whole body itches like hell

 

[schreib69]

solution for poison ivy(only):
-- as soon as you know you have been near or touched it. STOP. Go inside and wash abrasively with soap and water, Dawn is likely best.
-- if you are unlucky enough to have it showing up red or, later, blisters, wash first with Dawn and water, Dry off. Then, use full strength Clorox with a paper towel and wipe in ONE direction across the area, multiple times. Flip over the paper towel so that the side that touched you is inside the folded piece, but it is still wet with clorox; use that and again wipe in same direction.
-- run cold water over it; repeat the paper towel method with plain water, same direction. Dry
-- use skin moisturizer and wipe it over the area.

If you can get your doc to prescribe it: apply thin layer of triamcinolone acetonide ointment, 0.5%. Some find this ALONE works. I do all the above.
It works, goes away in a couple of days.

I find that I don't even know I have it until 2 days after exposure; shows first as redened skin. I take the above cleaning action right away.

Prednisone is not necessary if you do this because it will not have advanced to such a terrible, clear blister chain degree.

 

[thenne1713]

DO NOT BURN IT, NEVER, NEVER, NEVER, the smoke can kill people from reaction

 

[sean donato]

I've done thus.

LKiil at aoon as you see it. Small even 3 leaf.

Wrong sumac is here. The north east USA. Seen it , got it (before I seen it).

Only really marshy lands. Kill that crap too.

Not hard to find poison ivy, oak, and sumac around here. They all grow like the weeds they are.

 

[pdqdl]

I think that a careful review will demonstrate that you only have Poison ivy. Poison sumac is a West EAST Coast thing and poison oak is kinda spotty as to where it is located. Mostly south, as I recall.

<edited for accuracy>

 

[lone wolf]

my whole body itches like hell

Technu will help the itch somewhat.

 

[lone wolf]

I think that a careful review will demonstrate that you only have Poison ivy. Poison sumac is a West Coast thing and poison oak is kinda spotty as to where it is located. Mostly south, as I recall.

What do you mean, We have Poison Sumac right here in NJ.

 

[lone wolf]

We have poison ivy oak and sumac, northeast USA.

Buy me some gloves, pay shipping, and I'll send you some sprouts.

Sumac seems to like to be near wet lands.

 

[sean donato]

I think that a careful review will demonstrate that you only have Poison ivy. Poison sumac is a West Coast thing and poison oak is kinda spotty as to where it is located. Mostly south, as I recall.

You would just happen to be wrong in your assumption. One of the common mistakes people make around here is calling the tree of heaven sumac, when in fact its not, but vice-versa if often true as well. It's not really uncommon at all, and most will run from either variety not being able to tell the difference. Poison oak could arguably be more popular in certain areas, however just here at work we seem to have an abundance of it. Seems to be more like a short shrub then a vine like ivy.

 

[lone wolf]

You would just happen to be wrong in your assumption. One of the common mistakes people make around here is calling the tree of heaven sumac, when in fact its not, but vice-versa if often true as well. It's not really uncommon at all, and most will run from either variety not being able to tell the difference. Poison oak could arguably be more popular in certain areas, however just here at work we seem to have an abundance of it. Seems to be more like a short shrub then a vine like ivy.

https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/plants/geographic.html

 

[lone wolf]

https://www.thespruce.com/poison-sumac-pictures-4071931

 

[pdqdl]

You would just happen to be wrong in your assumption.

Nope. I was right as I could be. Sort of...


This is the distribution pattern of Toxicodendron diversilobum, otherwise known as the Pacific poison oak

Now if'n you are looking for the Atlantic poison oak, better identified as Toxicodendron pubescens, then you should look on this map. At least if you think the USDA knows where these plants should be found. Kindly notice, however, that they do not have any green in your state. I feel justified that my initial comments were somewhat warranted, although I am not about to argue with you as to whether the USDA actually has the map right. I know for a certainty that neither poison oak species are found extensively in Missouri, as displayed on the maps I have shown.




I would like to add, that that was not an assumption. I try to follow certain topics rather closely, and one of those is the distribution of the "poisonous" plants. (please see an exception, below)

One of the common mistakes people make around here is calling the tree of heaven sumac, when in fact its not, but vice-versa if often true as well.

I do not even need to do any Internet research on that plant. I have got Ailanthus altisimus memorized in great detail. It is also popularly known in this area as the Paradise tree and by some as the "stink-tree".

It's not really uncommon at all, and most will run from either variety not being able to tell the difference. Poison oak could arguably be more popular in certain areas, however just here at work we seem to have an abundance of it. Seems to be more like a short shrub then a vine like ivy.

Now myself, I'd like to see some detailed pictures of your poison oak. I'm almost willing to bet that it is actually poison ivy, which does not always climb like a vine. Sometimes it grows free standing.

You left out the poison sumac. Toxicodendron vernix


I completely missed the boat on that statement. I was remembering that the sumac was on the west coast, and I got that completely wrong. And I have never seen that plant, either, as I've never spent much time out your way.