Poison Ivy is a plant that I have come into contact with often throughout out my life. As a kid I loved to play in the woods and out doors and I guess not much has changed since then. Over the previous summer I worked long hours for a landscaping company, because I love being outside. There were many days where I would be working with or in the plant nearly all afternoon, usually trying to get rid of it. I would come home with a new rash nearly two times a week leading to a long term hate relationship with the plant. Upon hearing about the website project I knew right away that I wanted to do poison Ivy. Something about plant intrigued me to learn more about it, despite our dark past.

Poison Ivy , also known as Eastern Poison Ivy, is very common. Its Latin name Toxicdendron radicans comes from its genus Toxicodendrom and its species T. radicans. It is native to North America It mostly grows on the eastern half of the United States. Poison ivy can be found in all fifty states except in Alaska, and it ranges from Canada all the way to South America.

Poison Ivy is a woody, deciduous, perennial. Perennial means it is yearly active, and they generally last two years or more, and flower each year. The plant can be defined as a shrub, herb, or sub-shrub. Poison ivy can grow up to four feet tall making it a shrub, or be much shorter classifying it as groundcover, which it is commonly found in North America, It can even grow as a vine on the sides of trees. Its Habitat Is in large open fields, open rocky areas, and as a shrub type under story in forests and woody areas. It is very common in suburban environments as well due to birds and animals carrying the seeds.

Poison Ivy can be classified as an invasive species. It is considered invasive in the summer and spring when there are out breaks of the plant in the eastern United States. While the plant does not affect other plants to a high degree, it is notoriously known for its interaction with humans.

Poison Ivy has never had a particularly good reputation with humans. Upon coming into contact with poison Ivy leafs the oily coating on the skin called Urushiol causes allergic contact dermatitis, which is a rash out break on the skin. It is extremely itchy and can stay in some cloths for up to five years! An old saying that’s good to keep in mind is leaflets three, let it be—berries white danger is in sight (Poison Ivy-oarcd.ohiostate.edu). Poison Ivy has little medical value, and is not edible to humans. On the other hand some animals do consume it’s berries and leafs.

While not thought of highly in the United States Poison ivy is used for decorations in a few other countries. Also another interesting fact about poison ivy is that its genus Toxicodendron is the Greek word for poisonous tree. It is also said that poison Ivy is one of the largest workman’s comp. Claims.

March 6, 2008

Part II

Poison ivy also known as __toxicodendron radicans__ is hard to classify. It is actually not even an ivy, it’s a woody vine!! It is separated into two groups eastern and western, and about a half dozen different subspecies are also recognized. The plant can vary remarkably in terms of height, growth rate, and appearance, which complicates classification even more. Further confusing, the plant is also commonly mistaken for many other plant species including Boxelder Maple, Virginia creeper, and kudzu.

The plant can be identified by looking for a few particular traits. Poison ivy has three leaves. The leaves are usually described as almond-shaped and usually have few to no teeth. The leaf color can vary from light to dark green and the leaves will usually grow shiny as they mature. The stem of the plant is green, sometimes with a reddish tint. Another good thing to look for is if the leaves alternate around the vine, if they do and match the other criteria listed above it is most likely poison ivy. As stated before the plant varies in height and appearance, so it hard to tell sometimes. Poison ivy also takes the form of a vine that runs up surrounding trees. This vine can be identified by lots of tiny reddish hairs growing on and around the vine. Not only is poison ivy vary aesthetically, it also can occupy a plethora of different living conditions and regions.

Poison Ivy can be classified into about four of the fourteen habitat types. It can be found in temperate coniferous forests, temperate Grasslands, savannas & shrublands, flooded grasslands & savannas, and in montane Grasslands & shrublands.

Poison ivy is native to North America. It can be found in almost all parts of the continent including all fifty states except for in Alaska. The vine is very keen to growing in woody areas, particularly around edges such as tree or fence lines. In addition it is commonly found in Rocky areas, open fields, and suburban areas. Most suburban area growing occurs along the east coast of the United States. The plant can grow in many different temperatures and climates, and can be found in a number of soil types. It can even thrive in places apt to flooding. While very versatile in terms of living conditions does not grow in dry desert type areas, nor does it like altitudes above 5,000 feet.

The plants main environmental threat, other than arid regions and altitude, is humans. This pesky perennial is an enemy to most human beings. It is commonly thought of as a nuisance for the rash it causes, which comes from touching the leaves of the plant that contain a rash inducing oil known as urushiol. Two states including Michigan, even classify the plant as a noxious weed, also known as an invasive species, even though the plant is native to the Americas. Since the plant is not highly hailed by humans it is commonly sprayed with herbicides to kill it, or is torn out. Development is another threat to the plant although it is stated that the plant is even more common in the United States now, than when the country was discovered! Probably the last possible threat would be animals such as dogs or some species of birds that feed on the plants berries.

The only recommendations I have for these environmental harms to poison ivy are to not spray the plant. But unless you really love Toxicodendron radicans I actually would suggest killing the plant so the population doesn’t get out of hand.

Poison ivy wears many different hats. It can be found in leafy, groundcover like bunches in almost any of North Americas forrests, fields, and flood plains. It can also grow sky ward up a tree as a hairy vine. The plant grows in a number of different environments, and environmental conditions. It takes shape in many different ways and is even classified in many different ways. The controversy continues with the plants bad reputation with humans, making this plant a very unique and interesting species…from a distance.

1) USDA-NRCS PLANTS Database / Britton, N.L., and A. Brown. 1913. An illustrated flora of the northern United States, Canada and the British Possessions. Vol. 2: 484

2) Poison Ivy . internet Saturday, August 19, 2000. UC biology database cited 2008 Feb16 Available from : biology.clc.uc.edu - /graphics/taxonomy/plants/spermatophyta/angiosperms/dicotyledonae/anacardiaceae/Poison Ivy/

3) Nativity map internet. USDA Plants. [cited 2008 14. Feb] Available from: http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=TORA2&mapType=nativity&photoID=tora2_002_ahp.tif

4) www.oardc.ohiostate.edu. Ohio Perennial and weed Guide. 14 Feb. 2008 <http://www.oardc.ohiostate.edu/weedguide>

5) www.plants.usda.gov. United States Department of Agriculture.15 Feb. 2008 < http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=TORA2>

6) Poison ivy, poison oak, poison sumac, and their relatives / by Edward Frankel ; drawings by Anthony Salazar Pacific Grove, CA : Boxwood Press, c1991