Ah, yes @MalcolmS, good point! I know we don’t burn PI in our outdoor fires for this reason. I’ll just keep on pulling the sprouts.
Eeek, I didn’t know that! Poison ivy sure is a jerk of a plant!
Always makes me wonder what kind of yumminess needs that kind of protection.
Ha ha ha! I like that perspective!
The funny thing is, at least from what I’ve read, poison ivy isn’t poisonous at all – most humans just happen to be allergic to it. Some humans lack that allergy, and can touch it (or even eat it) just fine. (The leaves and berries apparently have very little flavor, so it’s not like the rest of us are missing much.)
Meanwhile, deer chow down on poison ivy all the time. Isn’t that wild?
Hi @Kimzy, I tried sending you a PM but I have not received the address yet.
Yes, sending now..
I wonder how that would work in a biochar setup? Low oxygen burn, no release of gasses.
My chickens are happy to eat PI. I’m not allergic, but I react to it. Hubby is allergic to it. I know lots of birds eat the berries when they come out in the fall.
I’ve never been exposed to poison ivy. Is it a first contact thing, or is there no reaction the first time and the body has an immune response to the second exposure?
Shipped it out today
It’s an oleoresin that irritates the skin on contact, and can keep spreading around on your skin/hair/clothing/etc if not washed with strong enough soap to remove the oils. If you’re sensitive to it, I would expect it to be reactive on first contact. Allergic reactions are separate and may develop over time through repeat exposure and be somewhat dose-dependent, but aren’t very predictable.
I’ve never touched poison ivy, either, and . . . I’m hoping I never do!
Neither have I! Thankfully it’s not common in my area. We do have poison oak in specific habitats and I have had minor exposures to it. Not pleasant and I would hate to experience a more serious exposure. The irritants are very similar between the species, though.
Poison Ivy, ive had it so bad i looked like a zombie. Only when I was a kid, on my Dads farm.
I never really reacted to it until the past few years. Hubby was never exposed until Dec '23. By January, he had a nasty systemic reaction as he had gotten it ALL over him. With steroids to tamp down the reaction, he ended up with 2 nasty abscesses that had to be cleaned and packed every few days. It was a harrowing experience! Since we have moved, I’ve gotten it a few times in limited patches. Of course, this spring I’ve had a few times that I discovered all the plants that make you itchy! For a week or two, it seemed I had a new rash pop out. So now I’m much more careful. We use IvyX pre-exposure goop and post-exposure scrub and it really seems to work quite well. On contact, PI causes about 2d10 points of damage, and then an additional 1D4 or 2D6 points of additional damage every 10 or 20 minutes there after. At least, that’s the game terms we’ve been able to come up with! (1D4 means rolling 1 4-sided die, and the damage is the number that comes up; 2D10 means using 2 10-sided dice to calculate damage). So, have we totally hijacked this thread yet?
Oh, you definitely have! 1D100 negative modifier to your ATK for your next combat due to giggles. 1D100 positive modifier to your CHR for your next social interaction due to swagger.
And you ALL need to check out jewelweed salve. It’s made from a plant that grows right next to poison ivy, and is powerful enough to reverse the cumulative reaction to urushiol (the nastiness on poison ivy, oak, etc). And simple enough to make at home.
Jewelweed is the best, crushed leaves or a leaf poultice with a carrier oil. So is salve made with flowers of sulpher and a carrier oil. A good dawn dish detergent wash after exposure breaks up those nasty oils and there is very little rash. Wash the clothing and shoes too with hot water.
I told my husband your D&D analogy, and he laughed!
I’m gonna have to research Jewelweed! I’ve made salve from chamomile and calendula, so I know its not hard, just gotta learn to ID this stuff.
@Kimzy Have you received the box?