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Homeowners know too well that not all greenery contributes to the beauty of a garden. Weeds, for instance, are a chief nuisance, and the meticulous among us have spent countless weekend hours picking dandelions, nettle, and thistle out of the ground. But even in their multitudes, weeds are more or less benign when compared to the itchy threat posed by poison ivy.
If you spot these vine-like plants, with their telltale trio of pointed leaves, you can resign yourself to the inevitability of suffering a painful red rash, or you can take action to eradicate it. The following are three ways to get rid of poison ivy.
1. Make a DIY Saline Solution
If you steer clear of commercial herbicides because of the chemicals they contain, experiment with an organic approach. You need not look any farther than your kitchen pantry for an active ingredient. It turns out that salt, in high enough concentrations, works to kill most unwanted plants, including poison ivy. But you can’t simply sprinkle it around.
- Create a saline solution by mixing 3 pounds of salt, 1 gallon of water, and 1/4 cup of dish soap.
- Fill a pump sprayer with your homemade herbicide and apply it directly to the poison ivy leaves. Do so on a clear day, allowing the salt the opportunity to do its job before rain washes it away.
- Check back occasionally and continue to reapply the herbicide until the poison ivy is gone.
Be careful not to spray the herbicide onto neighboring plants, because this concoction will kill them too.
Tried-and-True Advice
“I keep an organic garden and personally don’t use herbicides, but I’ve successfully tackled poison ivy just the same. If I spot a small bit of poison ivy, I spray it down with horticultural vinegar, which is much more acidic than household vinegar and needs to be handled with care. (Horticultural vinegar is sometimes sold at garden centers, but it’s easier to find online.) For larger patches of poison ivy, I cover the poison ivy patch with a thick tarp or cardboard for about two months. This smothers out the ivy plants, but it’s important to monitor the edges of the covering just in case an ivy tendril sneaks out beyond the tarp.”
—Lauren Landers, Contributing Writer
2. Pull it Out
The most hands-on poison ivy removal method is perhaps the most effective way to get rid of poison ivy. Put on a good pair of work gloves, long pants, and a long-sleeved shirt; the answer to your problem is as simple as digging up the poison ivy with a garden trowel.
- To remove all the roots, be sure to excavate each plant to a depth of around 8 inches.
- Take extra care in outfitting yourself for the task. It’s not a bad idea to go so far as using duct tape to seal the seam between your gloves and shirtsleeves, and the one between your pants and socks.
3. Use a Chemical Herbicide
Upon realizing there’s poison ivy growing on their property, most people enlist a store-bought herbicide containing either glyphosate or triclopyr. Note that both of these chemicals kill most other plants in addition to poison ivy. Always follow the instructions on the product’s packaging very carefully. BobVila.com never recommends using glyphosate, the main ingredient in Roundup, and warns readers about the dangers of using any chemical herbicides. We always advise trying every possible alternative before considering them.
Herbicide is potent stuff, so be careful where you’re spraying. If, for instance, the poison ivy is climbing up the trunk of a tree, take pains not to get any herbicide on the tree bark. Instead, dab a bit of herbicide directly onto the individual leaves of the poison ivy plant. Once you’ve finished treating the area, monitor it on and off for the next couple of weeks, reapplying if and when the poison ivy reemerges.
Whatever method you choose, fully getting rid of poison ivy requires patience and persistence. If a plant reemerges, keep at it with your chosen method, always being careful to keep your skin protected as you work.
