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PostPosted: Fri Jul 09, 2004 1:08 pm 
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Location: Midlothian,TEXAS
I have a heavily-treed acre that is about 30% covered in poison ivy. A few weeks ago I mowed and followed up with 2 applications of 20% vinegar, with orange oil and a little liquid soap. It killed some of it but, in reality, it just didn't work. I feel like I've wasted 4 gallons of expensive vinegar.

My other concern is that I discovered that I was spraying ground that is covered with tiny little brownish/gray toads. They were so small that I didn't realize it until it was too late. I'm sure I've put them through a very painful, if not fatal experience. Not to mention the spiders that I must have sprayed.

I know that goats are a solution, but we have deed restrictions for livestock, and, digging is just not practical.

Any ideas? Kent


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 Post subject: poison ivy
PostPosted: Sat Jul 10, 2004 6:35 am 
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Location: Plano & land at Dodd City,TEXAS
Kent-
We have much the same situation, 20 ac w/10 of it heavily treed or should I say 'poison ivied'. Can't mow in most of it but had someone come clear brush & dead limbs, etc, out of some areas & mow-a very close mowing. I was a little upset b/c I felt it was almost a 'scalping'. But everything has come back & we are able to mow some of it now & the poison ivy is lookin' unhappy. I think if you can devote time & energy to cutting it back often, it will finally give up. Howard always says, get it at the roots & you've got it. I don't have a solution to the toad incident but I certainly hope they recover!
Plano Patty

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PostPosted: Sat Jul 10, 2004 7:36 pm 
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Location: Midlothian,TEXAS
Plano Patty,

Thanks for the reply. Your situation sounds incouraging. I will try to keep them mowed. Surely I can handle 1 acre.

Some of the vines growing up the trees are 2 inches in diameter. It is somehow satisfying to cut them off at the ground and watch the leaves turn brown high up in the canopy.

Kent


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 Post subject: poison ivy
PostPosted: Sat Jul 10, 2004 8:45 pm 
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Location: Plano & land at Dodd City,TEXAS
Kent-
We have vines that size also-choking the trees. I just got Howards new tree book & what I thought was poison ivy wraping around the trees w/THICK 'trunks' like you described MAY be box elder trees. Looks like poison ivy until it gets about 2 ft tall & starts making a small trunk, if it's close to another tree, there it goes! We cut them off at the ground, I actually climb up in some of the trees & unwind it, sometimes we can get to it w/ladder.
Plano Patty

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PostPosted: Mon Jul 12, 2004 9:31 am 
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Location: Midlothian,TEXAS
Patty,

I looked up box elder and I'm pretty sure what I have is poison ivy. My vines have a hairy-like texture that is clinging to the trunks like velcro. It's easy to pull off though. It also has berries hanging in clusters.

I stumbled across this site: http://poisonivy.aesir.com
You can look over submitted photos of plants that may or may not be p. ivy. There were several references to box elder.


Thanks, Kent


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 Post subject: poison ivy
PostPosted: Sun Jul 18, 2004 7:17 am 
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Location: Plano & land at Dodd City,TEXAS
Kent-
I think you are right about poison ivy & box elder, it was just overwhelming to think poison ivy could get that huge! But ours has the 'hairy velcro' too. It has to help to cut it at the ground even if you cant get it all out of the trees. We also have mustang grapes that overtake the trees as well as green briar & honeysuckle. So many of the trees that looked like they wouldn't make it are doing so good with the vines out. Now that we've cleared a lot, 'bindweed' is coming up! And the tractor wouldn't start yesterday so who knows when we can mow. (tractor is 53 yrs old so I MORE than know how it feels) We took our 'Plano house' lawn mower up last year & ruined it! So it stays up there & works now & then.
Plano Patty

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 Post subject: Poison Ivy
PostPosted: Mon Jul 19, 2004 9:24 am 
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I just bought my first detached house. It's on a heavily wooded 1/3 of an acre and the poison ivy is rampant. Based on what I've read, pulling it out (and by it I mean the roots too) is the best way of getting rid of it. Is that true? I've also been told that if you leave any of it behind, it will come back. I'm afraid to plant anything else in the bed until I know it's gone for fear I'll have to pull out what I want to keep just to get rid of the poison ivy. Any suggestions? :evil:


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PostPosted: Tue Jul 20, 2004 7:39 am 
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Location: Midlothian,TEXAS
Diligence by either pulling or cutting will eventually cause the roots to starve... so they say. You could probably go ahead and plant in a bed if you use a thick layer of mulch and deal with the vines as they appear.


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PostPosted: Fri Aug 20, 2004 1:14 pm 
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Location: south east pennsylvania
Kent,
After reading the replies to your question, I can only add two ideas. First, start very early in the spring identifying the PS, and cutting or spraying it. Don't wait until July!
Second, do what my great grandfather use to do = in the early spring, id the PS, kill it, AND put a light colored pebble/rock on the ground to mark the spot. Then, whenever you see anything growing there, kill it right away. Don't wait for true leaves to form. Eventually you'll defeat the root system. Oh well, it's worth a try. It worked for him.

slh


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PostPosted: Sat Aug 21, 2004 2:06 am 
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It sounds like you sprayed vinegar on the soil. Is that what you did? Vinegar is a foliar spray only. Spraying vinegar on the ground feeds the plants.

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PostPosted: Sat Aug 21, 2004 9:26 am 
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Location: Midlothian,TEXAS
I've been spraying the leaves. OHHHHHHH, how I've sprayed leaves! Kent

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