Poison Ivy taking over my fenceline....

Well, darnit, Dee, you have tomatoes so why not PI, too? :haha:

I'm not allergic to it unless I touch someone with a bad case so I'm the family PI "warrior"; I wish I could chip it up but supposedly its oil "lives" forever unless burned. (Don't stand downwind of a burn pile; my father caught it from the smoke both inside and out many years ago!) Since the County won't let me have fires, I'll pack it up in a trash bag and let them deal with it.

A friend in Mt. Airy sprays with something that sounds like WD40--DD something? It's stronger than Roundup and works on the areas his pygmies can't access. Some goat keeper is sure to pop in and say it's not good for them but he's had pets for about 12 years and they're fine. Any hungry goats nearby you could rent?

I'm interested in ideas others suggest and bumping this so it doesn't get lost.

katy

 

I'm also interested in erradicating Poison Ivy without poisons. Can it be done? My husband is also very allergic to it. It had to get shots three times last year.

I'll be checking back here for replies!

 

There is an organic control spray sold for poison ivy that uses clove oil, sodium lauryl sulfate (the stuff in shampoo), vinegar and water. It costs about 40 bucks a gal, but you might try mixing the above and see if it works. It is a defoliant so don't get it on anything you don't want to kill. I don't have a formula for it. Wish I did.

 

You could spray it all over with disel fuel. Animals will leave it alone. Works best in hot sun.

 

Cyng,
Funny you should mention vinegar; I've been exploring that and rock salt for weedkilling in my graveled area. I do know vinegar which kills weeds is supposed to be stronger than grocery store offerings. I'd love a real recipe for making 40% or stronger stuff! 5% discouraged growth but I suspect less diluted is better.

I can find SLS and clove oil. Is there any reason we can't figure out a formula right here? (Wonder if Sunlight could be subbed for the SLS? I have that in spades! :haha: )

katy

 

I copied this from the material safety data sheet for the product;

"IDENTITY (As Used on Label and List) ST. Gabriel Laboratories Poison Ivy Defoliant Ready to Use Active ingredient: Clove Oil 12%, Sodium Laurly Sulfate 8% Inert ingredients: Vinegar,Citric Acid, Mineral oil, Lecithin, Water Total inert 80% Total 100% "

I don't know why they say the vinegar is inert. I personally feel it is an active ingredient.

You can buy conc vinegar. You get a little bottle, I think it is about a pint. and you are supposed to add water to make it into a gallon of reg vinegar. I have bought it in colorado.

 

Mutti,
I also have trouble with poison ivy, this will kill it. Spray this on the leaves, and the ground around it. Do not spray where there are any plants you would keep.
Bring 1 gallon of water to a boil, add 2 cups of salt, and continue to boil for 2 minutes. Cool, spray leaves and around the base of plane. In 1-2 hours you will see the leaves turning brown. This will kill the plant but will not kill the oil in the plant. I don’t know of anyway to kill the oil, it will last for years.
John#4

 

The WD-40 stuff is something like 2-40-D or something very similar. I always get kind of mixed up but I THINK it's pretty toxic.

I have mountains and mountains of poison ivy. I have poison ivy creeping over here from the cow field across the road --- I have huge and ancient poison icy vines creeping into some of the trees --- I have poison ivy starts trying everywhere.

For SOME of the poison ivy, I've found the only thing that works is Brush B Gone --- this has worked best on the very established poison ivy I have --- the stuff with an extensive root system.

For SOME of the other poison ivy (the stuff branching off from an established poison icy system), I get dried Round Up, mix it up triple strength in a Mean Green Super Strength Cleaner spray bottle (the cleaner is great AND cheap, and these are the best and most accurate spray bottles I've ever found!) and I whoop on it!! :yeeha:

Vinegar and salt work great on fresh starts not hooked into establsihed root systems. Bleach, eh. Don't bother. Much to my disappointent, it only seems to burn the leaves, but does nothing to eradicate the poison ivy.

If your husband can, have him dig around the base of the fence to see if there's a poison ivy root system down there. If so, he needs to pull it out.

 

The Name of the active you are trying to come up with is 2,4-D. It is one of the actives in Weed B Gon. Along with MCCP, and now a days something called Dicamba. All of these are Salts, similar but different from normal table salt. Not necessarily POISONS. I mean if we drink just salt water we'll die also. I have found that a 1 or 2% Glyphosate works real good on poison ivy, but the weed b gon works also. I think it's important to just keep at it. I consider it a WAR. LOL Just like the war I have against ticks. I'm a bad boy I even spray the neighbors PI on the other side of the fence just so it won't spread over to MY side. I'm terribly allergic also. I walk my 5 acres sometimes with a bottle of WBG and just spray away, but then again I can be Obsessive.

 

Roundup is expensive, don't waste it on Poison Ivy. PI is a woody vine. Roundup is intended to kill weeds and grasses. If you can catch the PI when it is still young Roundup will work. Once it is grown into a woody vine however you need a brush killer herbicide. Since your problem is along the fence line use one of the more potent chemicals such as Banvel, Velpar, 2,4-D ester+2,4-Dp ester, Tordon, or Oust.

I like organic too but when I comes to PI if a nuke would work I'd do it!

 

rwjedi: I too am at war against ticks and poison ivy --- and multiflora, the unidentified invasive bushes and that bull briar stuff.

:yeeha:

Torch: nuking PI is good!

 

Would nuking it give you "PIactive" fallout?

 

if you can keep an area mowed eventually it dies it needs a structure tree or something to climb . As far as poisons forget everything but brush-g-gone per noxous weed guy at the county. he fields a lot of calls but pi is not on most any noxous weed lists since it does not compete with or damage crops here. it is even better when mixed with diesel. it will take multiple applications. poisons are probably best if alergic since the other option is to physicly grub all the root network and vine up and dispose of it in the trash. If alergic do not burn it or you will be sorry. the best product to combat exposure is tecnu sold at drugist and walmart it must be used imediatley after exposure before a rash begins. it cuts the oil. ivy dry benedrine and cortisone creme are about the only helps once a rqash is started the tecnu will still help also. Always strip bathe and wash the cloths after getting near it to spray, if you are alergic. also beware if it is up a tree in the rain it can get you.

 

sorry make that brush-b-gone tested and effective