Facts
About Poison Ivy
Poison
Ivy is not contagious from person to another. You
have to touch the plant.
Urushiol
in Poison ivy can stay alive for 5 years including
dead plants.
Breaking
the blisters does not spread the Urushiol.
Direct contact is needed with the plant to get a
poison ivy reaction.
90%
of people have an allergic reaction to Urushiol oil.
The more you are exposed to it increase the
likelihood....so stay away.
Although
poison ivy and oak have 3 leaves per cluster, poison
sumac (which also spreads urushiol) may contain as
many as 15 leaves per cluster. It is also possible
for poison ivy and oak to to have varied cluster
formations that leave them with more or less leaves.
Poison
ivy smoke is very dangerous and should be avoided it can
cause internal and external injuries. Smoke
carries the oil, producing a rash over 100 percent
of the body. If you inhale the smoke, you can get
the rash in your throat, bronchial tubes, and lungs.
This can be fatal, especially if you're camping out,
where there's no hospital.
Poison
ivy can grow as a vine, a small bush, and a shrub.
You
do not get a poison ivy rash every year for 7 years
once you come in contact with poison ivy, just the
rash you have now.
You
can get poison ivy in the winter. A ski-do driver
accidentally broke a branch off and stuck it in his
mouth, thinking he was idling chewing a stick, when in
fact it was poison ivy. He had a severe reaction to the Urushiol. Dark,
dense, hairy-looking aerial roots are a certain
identifying characteristic in the winter
Birds
love the berries on the plant and it is none toxic.
They spread the plant around through their
droppings. The Chickadee and Downy Woodpecker, about
50 other bird species, including the Tufted
Titmouse, Wren, Yellow-bellied Sapsucker,
Robin, and Bluebirds eat this fruit. Poison
ivy has some redemption.
