Sarishan,
friends! It’s the time of year when we’re spending a lot of time
outdoors in this gorgeous weather, at events, during mundane activities,
and even in our own backyards. There’s a lot of things out there in the
bushes we need to watch out for, and I hear a lot of misinformation
circulating around.
Even about the bushes themselves.
I’m
talking about the bane of my existence, the one thing I fear more than
ticks, mosquitoes, fire ants, bears, or storms. Yes, folks, I’m talking
about Poison Oak, Poison Ivy, and Poison Sumac. It’s a cliché, but it’s true: “Leaflets three, let it be.”
We’ll start out by talking about a few common common lines of thought about the subject, some true and some not.
False...provided you’ve showered since exposure: Don’t scratch the rash, you’ll spread it.
Truth: Usually,
the rash comes up on your skin a few days to a week after you’ve been
exposed. If you’ve showered since then, the urushiol (the oil that
causes the rash) will have washed away. The “spreading” effect that has
spawned this idea is due to the fact that the rash comes up on skin at
different rates. The liquid inside the blisters does not cause a
reaction. However, don’t scratch hard or break the blisters, as doing so
leaves you open to infection.
False...provided you’ve showered since exposure: Don’t touch the rash, you'll catch it.
Truth: Again,
the rashes are not contagious. They don’t spread the rash on you, and
they won’t spread it onto other people. Now, what you can
do is get exposed to the plant, get the urushiol on you, and then go up
and shake hands with someone or hug them. If the urushiol gets on them,
they can get a rash, even if they were indoors all day. At that point,
it’s like the flu in that you can get it from a doorknob. I’m talking
directly to you,
people who love to say “Oh, it’s cool, I’m immune to the stuff.” Please
be aware that many people are not so lucky and wash up if you’ve been
exposed, unless you like the idea of being a misery vector.
False: Sometimes Poison Ivy has five leaves instead of three. Sometimes it has thorns.
Truth:
Sometimes Poison Ivy grows mixed in with Virginia Creeper, which looks
very, very similar to it except for the five leaves instead of three.
It is possible to get a rash from Virginia Creeper, but for a different
reason entirely. Virginia Creeper contains oxalate crystals, which can
irritate some people’s skin. The plants are not the same species, and
for most folks, Creeper is harmless.
Blackberry
is another look alike, only it has thorns. Poison ivy never has thorns.
But often it does grow where wild blackberry grows. It’s sneaky like
that. Still,
it’s like identifying snakes....if you aren’t sure what you’re dealing
with, assume it could potentially hurt you and avoid it.
As for Box Elder...to my eye, it just looks so much like Poison Ivy I can't tell where the tree stops and the Poison Ivy vine that's frequently growing on it starts. It happens, and it's a cruel prank as far as I'm concerned.
Usually False: I got exposed once, and I didn’t get a rash, so I must be immune.
Truth: You
probably won’t the first time get exposed. It’s that next time that you
have to worry about. The rash is an immune response. And it’s an
unusual one in that it tends to be delayed in most people (hence the
long lag in time between exposure and the manifestation of the rash).
You might think you’re immune, but every time you get exposed, you risk
that being the time you end up finding out how much fun steroid shots
aren’t.
False. And possibly criminally negligent: I’ll just burn it out.
Truth: Smoke
from this sort of plant could literally kill you or someone else. It
can go straight into the lungs, cause a respiratory reaction, and cause
you or someone else to asphyxiate. Best way I’ve found to get rid of it
is to spray it with Roundup Heavy Brush Killer and wait a week or two.
Chopping it out just encourages it and fills it with spite. So poison
it, wait till it dies, then very carefully remove the dead plant and
bury it. Be aware it can still get revenge even when dead. Which brings
us to....
False: It’s winter. I don’t have to worry about it now.
Truth: Oh,
yes, my friends. Yes, you do. And it’s even worse in the winter because
it’s harder to identify it. Look for vines with reddish, hairy looking
bark and little woody shoots that stick straight up and have a little
bends near the top. Maybe there will be the remnants of tiny white
berries on the stems. Sometimes you can find the dead leaves in the
surrounding leaf litter. It can still get you even dead. It’s like the
mummy or Nosferatu. Only nastier.
Poison
Ivy and Oak prefer disturbed areas, but they can and do grow just
about anywhere. I’ve seen them in all sorts of environments, particularly
the types of places we like to have events. I’ve seen them in parks and
even at Riverbanks Zoo hiding in a planted bed.
Poison Ivy:
This plant
matures into a vine and covers trees, fences, anything it can get
around. The sets of three leaves are pointed, satiny to shiny, with a jagged margin.
The stem on the middle leaf of the trio is often a little longer than
the other two. It grows into a vine that when mature, is covered with
reddish, hairy fibers that look like they might be fun to touch. They
aren’t.
Poison Oak:
Same three leaf rule, but the leaves are rounder and the lobes
irregular and random. Again, satiny leaves. This plant matures into a
gawky-looking shrub that can reach about ten feet, but usually it stays
in the two to four foot tall stage in my experience. It gets small green
berries that turn white.
Both plants are beautiful in the fall, turning bright shades of yellow and red.
Poison Sumac: Thankfully,
fairly rare. It grows in wetlands and is far less common. Which is good,
because it’s brutal. The one time I got tangled up with sumac, it sent
me to the ER. It can grow into a good sized tree, and has long, compound
leaves of seven to thirteen leaves. It looks nothing like Oak or Ivy. I
haven’t seen one since (I was at an SCA event in Georgia, actually.),
so I haven’t taken any pics of sumac. It would probably behoove you to
at least have a passing familiarity with it. You aren’t likely to
encounter
one, but if you do, you could really get messed up.
Learn
to identify these. I would almost say avoid Google Images, because I
have seen all kinds of crazy things identified as Poison Ivy that isn’t.
However, if you do use Google Images, just make sure your sources are
reputable. Cross reference heavily. In any case, I’d rather you be wrongly
afraid of Virginia Creeper or Sassafras or Box Elder and be safe than
not be aware of anything and end up in misery. So if you err, err on the
side of caution.
If
you are exposed to it, or think you may have been, simply rinse your
skin off in cold water (this is important. Use cold water first to avoid
opening up your pores.). A splash in a creek or stream will do fine,
even a careful rinse-off out of a canteen will help. I carry bottled
water in my van at all times for this very reason. You have a very short
grace period once you’ve been exposed (I'd call an hour seriously pushing it. Anything less, your mileage may vary.), but it’s not that hard to get it off
your skin.
If
you know you’re going to be exposed beforehand, applying Ivy Block to
your skin creates a barrier to keep the urushiol off, buying you a
little time to clean up before your immune system kicks in and goes
crazy. There is also a product called Technu which can be used to help
get the urushiol off after exposure. I’ve used both, and I recommend
both, but in all honesty, plain cold water will work if that’s all you
have. Be aware of urushiol contaminating your clothing, too, and act
accordingly. I recommend undressing right there in front of your washing
machine and not contaminating your living areas. Rinse off with cold
water, and then...and ONLY then, take a hot shower. Under no
circumstances should you take a bath. A bath will redistribute any
urushiol left on your skin and coat you in something you really don’t
want to be coated in.
These
things might sound extreme. However, I’m the most allergic person I know to
this stuff, I spend a lot of time in the woods, and I rarely get into
this kind of trouble. That’s because I am paranoid and I treat urushiol
as if it were radioactive kryptonite. Because for me, it is. It is possible
to have an anaphylactic response to this stuff. Not only that, but
wallowing obliviously in the stuff during your first week of Pennsic can
really ruin your will to live the second week. You don’t want ivy rash
at War. You don’t want it ever. Pay attention, learn a little woodlore,
play safe!
Lacho drom!
Rani Dulcinaya the ‘Gypcian
Kumpania Painted Wheel
Sarishan,
friends! It’s the time of year when we’re spending a lot of time
outdoors in this gorgeous weather, at events, during mundane activities,
and even in our own backyards. There’s a lot of things out there in the
bushes we need to watch out for, and I hear a lot of misinformation
circulating around. 
Truth: Usually,
the rash comes up on your skin a few days to a week after you’ve been
exposed. If you’ve showered since then, the urushiol (the oil that
causes the rash) will have washed away. The “spreading” effect that has
spawned this idea is due to the fact that the rash comes up on skin at
different rates. The liquid inside the blisters does not cause a
reaction. However, don’t scratch hard or break the blisters, as doing so
leaves you open to infection. 
Truth: Again,
the rashes are not contagious. They don’t spread the rash on you, and
they won’t spread it onto other people. Now, what you can
do is get exposed to the plant, get the urushiol on you, and then go up
and shake hands with someone or hug them. If the urushiol gets on them,
they can get a rash, even if they were indoors all day. At that point,
it’s like the flu in that you can get it from a doorknob. I’m talking
directly to you,
people who love to say “Oh, it’s cool, I’m immune to the stuff.” Please
be aware that many people are not so lucky and wash up if you’ve been
exposed, unless you like the idea of being a misery vector. 
Poison Ivy:
This plant
matures into a vine and covers trees, fences, anything it can get
around. The sets of three leaves are pointed, satiny to shiny, with a jagged margin.
The stem on the middle leaf of the trio is often a little longer than
the other two. It grows into a vine that when mature, is covered with
reddish, hairy fibers that look like they might be fun to touch. They
aren’t. 
Learn
to identify these. I would almost say avoid Google Images, because I
have seen all kinds of crazy things identified as Poison Ivy that isn’t.
However, if you do use Google Images, just make sure your sources are
reputable. Cross reference heavily. In any case, I’d rather you be wrongly
afraid of Virginia Creeper or Sassafras or Box Elder and be safe than
not be aware of anything and end up in misery. So if you err, err on the
side of caution. 
