Knowledge is Power #2
In rural North Carolina it's not at all uncommon to see people burning piles fallen leaves during fall. There's no other way to get rid of them out in the county. But I didn't know that inhaling the smoke from burning poison ivy will cause a reaction in your lung similar to the one that happens on your skin. It's supposed to hurt. Rake carefully.
Pick your salad ingredients carefully as well, because eating poison ivy can kill you. That bit of info should be at least somewhat startling since urushiol, the irritating chemical in poison ivy, is found in mangos. It's in a much smaller amount, sure, but some people get a poison ivy-esque reaction from just handling the skin or sap. The fruit is safe to eat, though. So they say.
By the way:
This is a picture of poison ivy.
This is a picture of jewelweed, which can be used to prevent or treat poison ivy. Note the obvious difference. It's basically safer to just rub them both on you.
Pick your salad ingredients carefully as well, because eating poison ivy can kill you. That bit of info should be at least somewhat startling since urushiol, the irritating chemical in poison ivy, is found in mangos. It's in a much smaller amount, sure, but some people get a poison ivy-esque reaction from just handling the skin or sap. The fruit is safe to eat, though. So they say.
By the way:
posted by Luke McIntyre at 2/04/2007 05:28:00 AM
2 Comments:
A better image of poison ivy would show the differences a little better, I think.
Remember: Leaves of three, let it be. Also, poison ivy has reddish-brown vines and hairy roots, and grows around and up trees. Don't grab hairy roots.
I worked landscaping over the summer once back home. Lots of heat and manual labor, and fire ants, but the worst part was the poison ivy. We had to use weed-whackers a lot, so I'd go over a poison ivy plant without really noticing it. Tiny bits of leaf shot all over me, practically covering me in poison ivy. It happened at least 3 times that summer. I got through a decade of Boy Scouts rashless; one summer of a shit job ruined me. Ever since then my general rule has been "don't touch plants, ever."
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