Organic gardeners throughout North America are usually familiar with poison ivy, as this tenacious weed grows in both sun and shade in throughout the United States and parts of Canada, according to the Centers for Disease Control. Poison oak is more common in the southeast and west coast of the United States. Gardeners don’t have to resort to chemicals to control these noxious weeds.
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The common saying regarding poison ivy and its identification states, ‚”Leaves of three, let it be.” However, there’s more to identifying poison ivy and poison oak than three-leafed clusters. According to the Cooperative Extension Program of Tennessee State University, poison ivy leaves can be serrated, lobed, or smooth. The leaves can appear shiny when growth is new, or dull as the season progresses. Poison ivy plants can grow as individual small plants, bushes, or vines reaching into the canopies of mature trees. Old vines cling to trees with hairy roots, and can reach a diameter of several inches.
Gardeners can identify poison oak, like poison ivy, by its clusters of three leaves. Poison oak leaves are different from poison ivy in that they are serrated and fuzzy. Additionally, poison oak forms shrubs, rather than vines.
There are several ways to kill poison ivy and poison oak plants in the organic landscape without resorting to glyphosphate or other chemical weed killers. For young plants, gardeners can carefully dig plants up by the root. Use a small trowel, extracting the root ball with the plant. If the plant is growing between sensitive landscape plants, gardeners can insert their hands into a plastic sandwich bag, pull up the plant, and turn the bag inside out to discard.
For larger poison ivy or poison oak shrubs, gardeners can use a 20% solution of horticultural vinegar. This organic weed killer will cause the top of the plant to die back within 48 hours, but deep-rooted plants may put out new top growth. Continuing to spray new growth will weaken and kill the plant within one growing season.
Established poison ivy vines require persistence to kill. Remove a one-inch section of the vine at the base with a handsaw, rinsing the saw well to remove the toxic urushiol sap from the tool. Initiate the organic spray program weekly as new top growth appears, but don’t expect complete die-off for up to three growing seasons.
Gardeners must not burn brush containing poison ivy or poison oak, as the particulate matter present in the smoke can cause severe lung irritation. Poison ivy is a risky addition to the compost bin, but gardeners can bury the plants in an unused part of the landscape, where they will decompose naturally.
Gardeners who inadvertently brush up against poison ivy can prevent a rash by rinsing the skin immediately with plenty of cold water. Severe poison ivy rashes may require a trip to the doctor for a steroid injection. Even mild cases are extremely annoying, but gardeners can lessen the inflammation with a colloidal oatmeal bath. A common folk remedy to treat a poison ivy rash is jewelweed, more commonly known as impatiens. Gardeners can split the stems of impatiens and apply the sap directly to the rash.
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