A lot of poison ivy actually.
I have noticed it a lot more this year and tried to warn others, but today I decided I should really put something on this site about it. That picture on the right is actual poison ivy found in Prospect Park today. I saw my daughter touching the plant just above and ran over hoping to catch her in time before she touched the poison ivy. I’m not sure if I did, but we followed all the mitigation we could just in case. A few minutes later we saw some other kids run right through it and my husband had to find them and tell them to wash up as well.
Important things to know:
Poison Ivy is Not Always Easy to Spot
Look at the pictures online. You will see a lot of different varieties. It looks different at different times of year. It is usually a vine close to the ground near trees, but it can sometimes even look like a tree. It can have berries. The color and leaf shapes vary. It does always follow the rule of three, but that doesn’t help too much as there are so many things with three leaves.
The Most Important Thing Is To Wash Off the Poison Ivy Oil (called urushiol)
If your kid might have been playing in or with poison ivy follow these steps when you get home. (This isn’t medical advice, and I am not a doctor) The oil is very sticky and will stay on clothing, shoes, and skin. That is how it spreads, but not from person to person once there is a rash, per the Mayo Clinic site.
- Take off all their clothes and put them in the wash (wear gloves if you can)
- Place the shoes in a plastic bag until you can wash them
- Immediately scrub the kid with lots of soap and scrub your own hands, arms, and feet as well
It is an oil, so use lots of soap. This will usually work, but may not if you missed a spot or you are just super sensitive.
What Happens?
The rash can last a few weeks and can vary by person. Some people say Jewelweed can help, but it is one of those things that they can’t officially say works as they haven’t done real studies. Once it is there you can use calamine and cool baths or do what I do and hold ice on it if you can stand it.
The best thing is just to stay away from anything suspicious looking near trees in the park…