Subject: Re: Poison Ivy News Group?

From: uhendjx@racer (Jonathan W. Hendry)
Date: 23 Aug 1996 00:03:30 GMT

Speaking of poison ivy, I've picked up some in my yard, but
I'm not sure exactly which plant gave me a rash.

I've narrowed it down to two. One's an ivy that
looks a lot like English Ivy, with large, veiny,
dark, dull, green leaves. There's no obvious
grouping of leaves. It's growing in my front yard,
and on some shrubs. It seems to do a lot of sideways
creeping after shooting up nearly vertically from
the ground. (At one point it had almost covered an
entire bush).

The other's an ivy which has light-green leaves
which occur in groups of five. Young leaves are
reddish, then become shiny green until they
mature (apparently). It send out little adhesive
pod feet to climb, and tends to climb vertically.
There are several trees in the area covered with it,
and it's climbing up a downspout on my house.

Can anyone give me a positive ID on these, so
I know which to avoid and kill?

Thanks...

--
Jonathan W. Hendry			Views expressed herein do
Steel Driving Software, Inc.	not represent those of
[email-masked]          Steel Driving Software, Inc.
[email-masked]                  or Lexis-Nexis

---

From: [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 23 Aug 1996 09:11:36 UNDEFINED

>grouping of leaves.

Poison ivy and sumac almost always have the leaves grouped, so this doesn't 
sound like PI or PO

>pod feet to climb, and tends to climb vertically.

This is where you have to be careful--if it has aerial roots, it could be PI.  
If it has tendrils with adhesive disks at the tips, it isn't.  PI never 
has tendrils.  This sounds more like Virginia Creeper.  Do all the 
leaflets in each leaf start at the same point, or are they on a central 
axis?  Virginia Creeper has the former; PI or PO the latter if there are 5 
leaflets...

>I know which to avoid and kill?

Find a good guide book to woody vines for your area--it should have keys or 
pictures that will allow you to  ID you plants.

Monique Reed
Herbarium Botanist
Texas A&M

---

From: [email-masked]
Date: Sat, 24 Aug 1996 21:45:49 GMT

[email-masked] wrote:

>In article <[email-masked]>, uhendjx@racer (Jonathan W. Hendry) writes:

>That's the bad one...

The five-leafed plant is known as Virginia Creeper, and is
harmless, except to your masonry.  Those little pod feet
explore every crack and cranny, and weaken the wall.

Brenda "no cracks and crannies coments, please" Bass
[email-masked]