How To Get Rid Of Poison Ivy, Poison Sumac and Poison Oak

Poison ivy, poison oak and poison sumac can turn an afternoon of yard work into weeks of itching. All three carry the same troublemaker: urushiol, an oil in the sap. An amount of urushiol smaller than a grain of salt causes a rash in 80 to 90 percent of adults.

The good news? You can get these plants off your property safely. It takes the right clothing, the right method for the size of the job, a little patience with regrowth and one firm rule: never burn them.

Here’s how to identify each one, remove it, clean up afterward and handle a rash if one shows up.

Where Poison Ivy, Oak and Sumac Grow

Each of these plants has its own range, so it pays to know which ones live near you.

• Poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans) is native from Maine to Florida and west from Nebraska to Texas. A close cousin, western poison ivy (T. rydbergii), is a low shrub.
• Western poison oak (T. diversilobum) grows from British Columbia to Baja California. In California it is widespread.
• Atlantic poison oak (T. pubescens) is a low shrub of dry, sunny spots. In Florida, it is confirmed from Levy and Marion Counties northward.
• Poison sumac (T. vernix) grows in swamps and other wet areas, pine woods and shady hardwood forests.

Poison ivy turns up in plenty of places you might not expect. It grows in sun or shade and is often abundant along old fence rows and the edges of paths and roadways. Birds eat the fruit and spread the seeds.

How to Identify Poison Ivy, Oak and Sumac

You have probably heard “leaves of three, let it be.” It is a good start, but it’s a general truth, not a rule: poison oak leaves occasionally have five or seven leaflets. Look at several features together.

Poison Ivy

Eastern poison ivy is typically a hairy, ropelike vine with three shiny green leaves budding from one small stem, which may turn red in the fall. Western poison ivy is typically a low shrub with three leaves that does not climb.

Leaf shape varies a lot, even on the same plant. Leaflets can be toothed or smooth-edged, and the stalk of the middle leaflet is longer than the stalks of the other two. The berry-like fruits are round, grooved and white and waxy.

Poison Oak

Poison oak also has leaves made of three leaflets, but they are lobed, a bit like an oak leaf. Atlantic poison oak’s leaf stems and leaflets have a coating of fine hair. Western poison oak can be a dense shrub in the open or a climbing vine in shade, and its leaflets range from glossy to dull.

Poison Sumac

Poison sumac is a woody shrub or small tree, not a vine. Each leaf has 7 to 13 leaflets arranged in pairs with a single leaflet at the tip, on reddish stems. The fruits are ivory-white to gray and hang in loose clusters. UF/IFAS notes that poison sumac is more allergenic than poison ivy and poison oak.

Sumac vs. Poison Sumac

Harmless sumacs grow in many of the same places. In Florida, winged sumac can be told apart from poison sumac by its 9 to 23 leaflets, clusters of red berries and the “wings” along the stem between the leaflets. In that comparison, red berries mark the harmless winged sumac, while poison sumac’s fruits are ivory-white to gray.

Look-Alikes: Virginia Creeper and Box Elder

Virginia creeper is the vine people most often mistake for poison ivy. It has five leaflets, blue-black berries and tendrils with tiny sticky pads. Box elder seedlings can have three to five leaflets, but their leaves sit opposite each other on the stem, while poison ivy’s alternate.

Not sure? Treat the plant as poisonous until you know otherwise. Keep in mind that all three plants are deciduous, and bare winter stems and roots still carry urushiol.

Before You Start: Protect Yourself

Urushiol is in every part of the plant, including the aerial roots, dried leaves and fruit, and you can react to oil carried on animals, tools, clothes or shoes. Damage to the plant also releases the oil, so weed eating, clearing brush and pruning all raise your exposure.

Dress for the job:

• Long sleeves, long pants, boots and gloves. That is the standard list. Socks help too.
• Two layers of gloves. Wear washable cotton gloves over plastic gloves. Water-impermeable gloves should always be worn when handling the plants, including the roots.
• A barrier cream, if you react strongly. Products containing bentoquatam may offer some protection before contact.
• Hands off your face. Your gloves carry the oil, so don’t rub your eyes or wipe your face with a sleeve while you work.

Here’s a handy trick for small jobs: slip each hand into a plastic bag, secure it with rubber bands, pull the plant, then turn the bags inside out to take them off and throw them away.

If you are very sensitive, think twice about doing this job yourself. Hand pulling is not recommended for people who are sensitive to the plant.

How to Get Rid of Poison Ivy, Oak and Sumac Without Chemicals

Pull or Dig Out Small Plants

Digging works best on small plants and small areas. Small seedlings can be pulled carefully with gloves and protective clothing, but hand pulling a mature plant with an established root system is very difficult, and the plant can grow back from fragments left in the ground.

Timing helps. Remove plants in early spring or late fall when the soil is moist and the roots come out more easily. Grubbing in dry, hard soil usually breaks the stems and leaves the roots behind to resprout. Get the whole plant, roots included.

Cut It Down and Keep It Down

Bigger patch? Starve it. The University of Georgia says poison ivy will not tolerate repeated tillage, cutting or mowing, and that continually clipping the plant at or near ground level will eventually control it. Inspect the plants every week or two and cut back any new green growth. Be patient: repeatedly cutting vines at the soil line can provide control over several years.

Skip the string trimmer. Weed eating is among the activities that injure the plant and transfer the oil onto skin, clothing, tools and pets.

Let Goats Do the Work

Goats really will eat these plants. Grazing by sheep and goats can be effective in small areas, and a UC Davis study found no urushiol in the milk of dairy goats fed poison oak. Just don’t pet them right after a meal. The oil can stick to fur.

How to Kill Poison Ivy, Oak and Sumac With Herbicides

For a big or stubborn stand, extension services recommend a labeled herbicide. Their control guides are written mainly for poison ivy and poison oak; poison sumac is a close relative, so the same steps are the closest guide for it. Use a product that contains glyphosate, triclopyr, or a three-way mix of 2,4-D amine, dicamba and mecoprop. Products sold as “poison ivy killer” commonly contain some combination of glyphosate, triclopyr, 2,4-D or dicamba, so read the active ingredients on the label.

Brand-name examples include Roundup Poison Ivy killer and Ortho’s poison ivy and brush killer. Formulas change, so check each label for which active ingredients it contains and where it may be used.

Glyphosate or Triclopyr?

Both work. Triclopyr is a highly effective herbicide for poison ivy control, while 2,4-D alone is only marginally effective. The differences that matter in a home yard:

• Glyphosate is nonselective, so it will damage or kill grass and other plants it touches.
• Triclopyr will not injure grasses but will damage or kill other broadleaf plants, and spray drift can injure desirable plants.
• Garden beds: Herbicides containing triclopyr, 2,4-D or dicamba are not labeled for use in landscape planting beds, while glyphosate can be used there.

When to Spray

Spray when the plant is in full leaf. Triclopyr gives the best control after the leaves fully expand in spring and before they change color, and glyphosate gives the best control from 2 weeks before to 2 weeks after full bloom in early summer. In other words, glyphosate works best at the flower or fruit stage.

Follow the label for mixing, weather, rain-free time and how long to keep people and pets off the area. The rule is plain: it is a violation of federal law to use a pesticide in a manner inconsistent with its labeling. Wear the protective gear the label lists. For foliar sprays, wet the leaves and stems until they glisten, but not to the point of runoff. Keep spray off plants you want to keep.

Vines Growing Up a Tree

Don’t spray up into the tree. Cut the vine instead. Cut poison ivy vines 2 to 3 feet above the soil surface and treat the remaining stems (painted or sprayed) with concentrated glyphosate within 48 hours. Apply herbicide to a cut surface immediately, because a delay lets the cut dry and gives poor control. So treat the stump right away.

The cut vine left in the tree still carries urushiol (even dried leaves do), so handle it with the same care if you pull it down later.

Plan on Repeat Treatments

One spray rarely finishes the job. Multiple applications of systemic herbicides are usually necessary because poison ivy has an extensive root system, and repeat applications should be made at the full-leaf stage. Watch treated areas closely for at least a year and re-treat as needed.

What About Bleach, Vinegar or Salt?

Homemade weed killers made from bleach, vinegar, salt and dish soap get shared a lot online. The disadvantages of these home remedies often outweigh the advantages, and they don’t come with labels giving safety or rate information, though they can still be hazardous to your health.

• Kitchen vinegar is likely not a strong enough grade for weed control, according to University of Illinois Extension. Some homemade weed controls also work only temporarily or only partly affect the top growth. Our guide to household vinegar sprays explains why the roots survive.
• Salt destroys soil structure and can move through the soil to nearby plants.
• Contact (leaf-burning) sprays can defoliate a big plant without killing it. Non-translocated herbicides such as glufosinate, diquat and pelargonic acid will defoliate large plants but are typically ineffective at completely eliminating large established poison ivy plants.

Poison ivy comes back from its roots, so a spray that only browns the leaves leaves you right where you started. A labeled herbicide or steady cutting is the better bet.

Can You Mow Over Poison Ivy?

It’s best not to. Mowing can release oil particles into the air, similar to burning, so mowing poison oak is not recommended. Cut standing plants down by hand first, with your skin covered.

Once the plants are cut to the ground, frequent mowing is one of the repeated cuttings that eventually control poison ivy.

Already mowed over a patch? Wash up right away (see below), wash your clothes separately in hot water, and clean the mower, especially the deck and handles, with rubbing alcohol or soap and plenty of water.

Never Burn Poison Ivy, Oak or Sumac

This is the one rule with no exceptions. The CDC says burning these plants can be very dangerous because the allergens can irritate the lungs. The oils travel on smoke particles that can be inhaled, breathing the smoke can cause severe respiratory irritation, and burning does not effectively reduce infestations anyway.

That goes for brush piles, too. Clemson Extension warns that highly allergic people may develop a rash from inhaling smoke when poison ivy is burned in brush piles.

How to Dispose of Poison Ivy Safely

Dead doesn’t mean safe. Even dead plants or roots may cause allergic reactions for a couple of years, and detached, dried brush can still cause dermatitis.

• Bag the cuttings in heavy-duty trash bags as you go, and check your local rules for yard waste.
• Other options: bury the brush, stack it in an out-of-the-way spot or take it to a disposal site.
• Don’t compost it, chip it or shred it. Dried brush can still cause a rash, and damaging the plant releases the oil.
• Label the bags so nobody handles them by mistake.

Clean Up Right Away

Urushiol is sticky and long-lasting. It can remain active on the surface of objects for up to 5 years, and the FDA says it lingers, sometimes for years, on virtually any surface until it is washed off with water or rubbing alcohol.

• Clothes: take them off carefully, without touching the outside. Wash exposed clothing separately in hot water with detergent.
• Tools and gloves: clean tools with rubbing alcohol or soap and lots of water. Wash your shoes and boots too.
• Pets: wash a pet that may have brushed against these plants with pet shampoo and water while wearing rubber gloves.

Wash Your Skin Fast

Speed matters more than anything else. The UC Statewide IPM Program says urushiol can only be removed in significant amounts if it is washed off right away: about 50 percent at 10 minutes, 25 percent at 15 minutes, 10 percent at 30 minutes, and after 30 minutes it has all been absorbed. Sensitivity changes the window, though: very sensitive people will react unless the oil is off within 10 minutes, less sensitive people may have up to four hours, though it is generally accepted that the oil binds to the skin in 30 minutes.

Rinse skin immediately with rubbing alcohol, a poison plant wash or dishwashing soap and lots of water, rinsing often so the wash doesn’t dry on the skin and spread the oil, and scrub under your nails with a brush. Advice on water temperature varies: some say soap and cool water, others warm, soapy water. Either way, use plenty of it.

Over-the-counter urushiol removers, including Tecnu and Zanfel, have been shown to remove urushiol from the skin. Wash anyway if you’ve missed the 30-minute window. It still helps you avoid more exposure from contaminated clothing.

If You Get a Rash

The rash itself is not contagious. Touching someone’s rash won’t give you a rash, and the rash will not spread. New spots that show up later usually come from oil still on your nails, clothes, tools or pets.

How long does it last? Estimates vary: the rash, blisters and itch normally disappear within 1 to 2 weeks without treatment, though the rash can last 2 to 5 weeks.

For relief, the American Academy of Dermatology suggests cool compresses, calamine lotion or hydrocortisone cream, short, warm baths with colloidal oatmeal, and antihistamine pills. Don’t scratch: scratching can cause an infection.

Get emergency care if you have trouble breathing or swallowing, swelling on your face, a rash around your eyes, mouth or genitals, a rash on most of your body, a fever, or itching that gets worse or keeps you from sleeping. Call 911 or go to an emergency room for a severe allergic reaction, like swelling or difficulty breathing.

The Bottom Line

Getting rid of poison ivy, oak and sumac is a patience job, not a one-day job. Dress for it, dig small plants, cut and starve bigger ones or use a labeled herbicide, plan on follow-up treatments, bag the debris, wash everything, and never burn it.

Related reading: How to Kill a Tree Fast and our guide to the backpack and tank sprayer.

What’s your poison ivy battle plan this season: dig, cut or spray? Tell us in the comments!