Also note, Virginia Creeper DOES NOT contain Urushiol Oil like Poison Ivy. Maybe its flowers aren't as showy, but the red foliage at the ends of the season is fantastic and woodsy. He touched it with his bare hands and did not experience any reaction. The extreme exposure blisters will ooze for a day or two but improve. Also, thanks for listing the skin irritation reactions--I'd been wondering about that...
Animals rely on these plants for their existence more than any rash could ever bother you. Where mature forest trees stood fifteen years ago is now low scrub with a vanguard of virginia creeper like some kind of space-slime invasion. On Oct 9, 2007, Perenniallady from Otterville, ON (Zone 5b) wrote: I have had a experience with it's partner poison ivy.I planted it and boston ivy all around the yard first i made about 30 cuttings some was boston ivy but some poisonivy.I scratched my better half's back.oops We both had it for amonth.We got shots and pills.Then we found that jewel weed was a cure.It works.It sure was awful.I learned a good lesson.I worked at a nursery for 23 and should of known better .I did't know what it looked like til lately. On Jun 27, 2009, plantnation from Kalispell, MT wrote: I have always loved Virginia Creeper. s rash is painful and itchy as ever! Peanuts are a very valuable food source for those who are not allergic. I thought that it was a weed and tried to get rid of it, with no luck. Besides fixing up the house the yard had been overgrown w this vine. On Aug 4, 2010, journeywalker228 from Marlborough, CT wrote: I finally figured out what is giving me burning eyes, a sunburn look on my face along with an outrageous itch. If Virginia creeper is a problem, the best way to remove it is to find the main vines and clip them. It is dried up but refuses to heal. I'm trying to cover 900' of fence where there is no shade and everything else that's been planted has died from the terrible drying wind during the winter. He is a metalworker and mechanic, so he is around dirt and oil all day long and has a hard time keeping his fingernails clean while at work. This plant is also a very fast grower. All days after exposure. And to those that said they're not ALLERGIC to PI or VC... apparently you haven't TOUCH the right one yet. When his leg was swelled up three times its normal size he finally showed me, and we went immediately to the ER where he was admitted to the hospital for IV antibiotics because he had severe cellulitis, which is an infection in the deeper tissue of the skin. I would say if you react to this plant it does look like additional exposures cause a worse, more aggravated rash than previous exposures. Also, I read here that someone had severe swelling around the eyes and mouth, which even without an infection can be very dangerous and might require a corticosteroid injection to prevent throat swelling or eye damage. It has caused no problems and we love it. I live in zone 8b (just north of Houston, TX) and it loves to grow here! Invasive? But my most recent cutting of it, last thursday, resulted in my receiving the most horrible, hidious, itchy and blistery rash ever. I was working in the yard on an extremely hot day with shorts and sleeveless shirt.....sigh. (steps off soapbox). This summer, with more rain than we have had in over 400 yrs. ever. The next morning when i got i up, my top lip was very swollen and half of my face had a rash. How about taking some sap from your beloved VC and rub it on your face. Vinegar is the killing agent so the more acid you can take with some burning sensation the better. Every year it comes back with a brutal vengeance. On Sep 29, 2005, bulldozier from Ventura, CA wrote: Like many others here, I found out the hard way how horrible Virginia Creeper can be. Several days ago I untangled a large amount of it from my rose trellis. My husband and I are both doctors and he has also never heard of this. That one caused a 4"x6" bright red blotch on my forearm where ALL my skin was eaten away. BIG MISTAKE! I do not get Poison ivy but my rash from this plant is EXACTLY like my frie... read morends who DO GET POISON IVY. On Jun 15, 2004, tipp2 from Pompton Lakes, NJ wrote: 25 yrs ago reaction to & rash from contact with creeper sent me to doctor. I have also come to the conclusion that in the colder zones it does not seem to get out of hand. It was pulled as a precautionary measure because it can cause a rash, but it was very, very beautiful, especially the new growth. A weed is a plant growing where you don't want it. And sure enough. I covered the affected skin with gauze, tape, and band aids, since it seeped yellowish ooze. I just wanted to let everyone know who is trying to get rid of it, in a previous comment someone said vinegar works, and it does. I could have swore that I had done chopping of this vine before, and maybe I have. Needless to say I have an even worse reaction this time- it looks like acid was thrown on me. Thanks! But this monster keeps invading my garden plot and flowerbeds. However, over the next couple of days I developed rashes and blisters all over my body. r products will control it. Believing them when they told me it's only poision ivy and oak that cause the blisters and rash, I touched some of it a couple of days ago and then accidentally touched my ear, and some brushed against the top of my ankle, and now I have the awful itch, again! Knowing it was a native, non-invasive vine in this area, I told him I wanted some for my fence. My friend says that the "grease cutters" in the Dawn cut the oils from the plants. My next door neighbor warned me that she tried to help the previous homeowners remove this plant and that she developed a nasty rash. For added soothing, keep some in the fridge. I would advise anyone coming into contact with this vine for the first time to limit exposure until you know whether or not you are sensitive to it. Symptoms of rash Stinging nettle rash presents as raised bumps or hives that are often light in color and up to a centimeter in diameter. The fruit is preferred by many birds, in particular thrush species like mockingbirds, catbirds, robins, wood thrushes, etc., and is useful to them during fall migration. even the leaves are diff. Compared to other vines and climbers I've experienced, V.C. I just wanna share my 2c. Thanks for sharing with us. The plant has more of a tree like stalk than an ivy. I cannot comprehend how this plant has never been classified as hazardous, the symptoms and spread are worse than I've ever seen with poison oak or poison ivy. The first time was two years ago and we thought it was poison ivy, though the itching was much worse and it seemed to last a longer time. Good luck from former Biologist o/. So I got a steroid shot and some orals that I hope will help! After we got home from a miserable week (sorry Aruba it wasn't your fault) I went to my doctor but the above treatment didn't help as quickly. DO NOT WEED WACK THIS PLANT OR WEED WACK IN PLACES U EVEN THINK IT MAY BE! I find it attractive and just let it grow where it has since
Why would anyone buy a plant available as a seedling under every bush and tree? Moonseed. I took a round of prednisone each time. The next day my face was on fire. The rash will look like small intensive bumps at every pore with mild exposure, or with extreme exposure big blisters. I also like that the berries attract birds, I always feel better if there is some sort of wild life around me! I have sprayed roundup on the vines that run out across the ground and it does kill the vine but fails to go into the root for kill. dients list.
I have had poison ivy infections, and simply avoid the plant. What happens is they crystallize out of the sap like micro-spines and imbed in the skin like miniature cactus spines. I would recommend this plant to anyone that enjoys fall color. No rash, not me or my family or anyone who has ever worked on the property and come in contact with it. Here's the interesting part, I have two different rashes now. What about guests? These are the cleistothecia or overwintering bodies of the fungus. VInegar was more effective than Roundup on the vines in my flower bed. She ended up burning that area and treating it with pesticide, which she otherwise rarely uses in her yard. However, it does have sap that may irritate your skin. many people think a poison plant rash can be spread from one part of the body to another or from person to person. On Aug 1, 2004, death2creeper from Carmel, IN wrote: A portion of my woodlot is a 2 acre yard that I'm returning to a forested state. If any of this occurs, call a doctor or poison control. over the next few days, the rash kept spreading and my left eye was so swollen, that it was almost completely shut. Not quite sure what was happening I check the play area and the only vine I found was the Virginia Creeper. I was standing the entire time, but the vines did break and I g... read moreot the sap on my arms and hands. It's one of the few native vines we have in Central Texas, is low maintenance and birds love the berries. During the second week, it started to spread to my face and legs. *
The berries are a favorite of birds, mice, skunks and chipmunks. No one I know is allergic to it. I could not believe I had been that careless or that I had developed such a bad case from contact with my pets. I think the rash is actually worse than poison oak because it seems to take longer to stop itching. Previously I have pulled this stuff for years without problem. Hope this helps...
Went to doctor after two days of cortisone cream not helping, so did one round of the prednisone pack of pills. The plant is often grown as a covering vine for walls, fences, and trunks of large trees. It has only been the last 5 or 6 years that VC has begun invading my land. Anyway, just wanted to put in my experience with it. It was everywhere that I'd touched my hands to my skin before taking a shower--including all over my face and neck. up along the chicken wire. I'm ... read morea fair skinned red head and usually react to anything that can cause a rash, but so far I have been lucky in handling Virginia Creeper. It is growing up a telephone pole on which I have trellised a Blaze climber rose and a Jackamanii clematis. In eleven years, it hasn't yet gone over the fence or gotten into the maple tree. It spreads by root, will choke out most plantings if allowed to move in. The second time he had been pulling Virginia creeper vines from the trees they were strangling on the border of our woods. I either was not carefu... read morel enough or the rain helped the poisons soak in. If some kind of human activity is lending advantage to the plant and creating an environment in which it will overpower other plants (when it otherwise wouldn't), then it is those human activities that need to change. We have always had what I now realize is Virginia Creeper. nds who DO GET POISON IVY. When it can't get sun the roots will die. It grows along my backyard fence here in Ventura, CA, so after a trimming I broke out in horrible rashes wherever my skin was exposed.