If only there was a market for poison ivy
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| Knowing how to identify poison ivy can help you avoid it. (URI Photos / M. Peach) |
Michelle Peach has a lot of personal and professional experience spending time outdoors, navigating diverse landscapes in and around Rhode Island. A clinical associate professor in the University of Rhode Island’s Department of Natural Resources Science, her work in the Ocean State brings the Wakefield resident into a range of local settings, from the woods to coastal communities. She also recently completed a 50-hikes-in-a-year challenge and spent an extra lot of time exploring natural areas in Rhode Island in that time.
As the coordinator of URI’s Master of Environmental Science
and Management program, Peach works with graduate students gaining and applying
their professional skills to solve contemporary environmental challenges.
With so much work outdoors, both professionally and personally, Peach shares some tips to contend with one challenge the outdoors can present throughout the year.
Whether outdoors in summer, hiking in fall, or working in
one’s yard in the spring, Peach’s top tips to avoiding poison ivy when outdoors
are: stay on trails when hiking; know how to identify poison ivy so you can
avoid it; and wear long pants and close-toed shoes when needed.
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| Avoid any tree vines that are covered in what looks like many dense hairs; the aerial roots can be toxic. |
Poison ivy leaves are composed of three leaflets, so it
looks like the leaves grow in clusters of three, said Peach. Not everything
with clusters of three leaves is poison ivy, she said, but if people avoid them
all, they will be safe.
She said it’s best to avoid any vine that is covered in what
looks like a lot of dense hairs. Those are actually aerial roots, but they can
be just as toxic as every other part of the plant.
Staying on the trail lets URI’s
Michelle Peach enjoy hiking Rhode Island in her off-time, while avoiding poison
ivy.
Importantly, poison ivy and other plants in the “poison”
family should not be burned as that can cause a reaction to those nearby — even
without touching it.
Rash response
If you do touch poison ivy (or something you think may have
been poison ivy), the best response is to wash the area as soon as possible
with cool, soapy water. Any clothes that come in contact with poison ivy should
be carefully removed and washed. The oils can be transferred from clothing to
skin, so be careful not to touch any part of the fabric that may have come in
contact with the ivy. These rules also apply for contact with poison sumac or
oak, as well as animals coming into contact with any of these plants.
Pets should be bathed if they touch poisonous plants; wear
gloves when you wash them. Pets will not get a rash, but if they get the oil on
them, their humans could get a rash from touching their fur.
If you do get poison ivy, Dr. Christopher Nasin, medical
director in URI Health Services, recommends applying calamine lotion to the
rash to help with itching or adding oatmeal to a cool or lukewarm bath. Avoid
using antihistamine creams and numbing or antibiotic ointments; these could
cause a reaction that makes your skin more itchy or irritated. Rashes should
improve in two to three weeks; call a doctor if needed after that time. EDITOR'S NOTE: Prednisone can be very effective, very quickly for severe outbreaks. Learned from experience. Will Collette
With poison ivy being so common in our region, the website for
the URI campus’ North Woods also offers information on identifying the plant
and its benefits to wildlife.
Unsure about possible poison ivy in your yard? To learn
more about allergy-causing plants and how to identify them, send a photo to the
URI Cooperative Extension Gardening and Environmental Hotline at gardener@uri.edu. Visit the URI
Cooperative Extension website to
get on the email list for upcoming URI programs or follow URI Cooperative
Extension and the College of the Environment and Life Sciences on social media
(@uricoopext /
@uri_cels).
