Warmer weather is here and there’s yard work to be done! But be careful… poison ivy is already blooming. If you wish to limit your poison ivy’s presence, cut it off before those flowers turn to seeds.
Poison ivy is a common plant in sunlit wooded areas, but also makes its home in backyards, schoolyards, roadsides, and city parks. It is especially common along fences and at the base of trees and is found through much of the U.S., Canada, and well into Mexico.
Poison Ivy uses the air corps for dispersal. Its gray-white, slightly fuzzy berries are present through winter and have a nutritious outer covering and a tough seed hidden within. Many resident and winter migrant birds eat those seeds in south Florida.
By early February new leaves are emerging, flowers are produced and new fruit is produced -- potentially in time for the migrants heading north. Then, while a bird is perched on a fence or tree branch, the seed passes through its digestive tract and is deposited with a bit of fertilizer.
Thus begins the cycle of renewal for poison ivy. On this week’s “Wild Things you will learn about poison ivy and a couple of their relatives, why are they becoming more prevalent in our lives, ways you can get the ivy rash, and how you can deal with it. Learning “leaflets three, let it be” is a start to help you avoid it.