Poison Ivy

[harr0140]

I am curious about everyones opinion of poison ivy on the course.

I had poison ivy when I was a kid once while playing GOLF. SInce I started playing disc golf (2 years ago) I have had cases of poison ivy, oak or sumac, no less than 4 or 5 times. It has progessively gotten worse each time. The last time was almost unbearable and it lasted literally 2 months.

I am wondering what you guys have for experiences in dealing with the parks department about its maintenance or should I say eradication?

I think the parks departments are responsible to take care of the problem, but am wondering about the best way to approach them. If it helps I can certainly justify myself by saying I am a professional landscaper and horticulturist. I could take care of it myself but want to know how I go about getting our local parks departments to take care of the problem. I do not expect them to take care of it on the entire property but think they should be able to take care of it within reasonable distance of the fairways and green areas.

Any input here will be helpful!

Mike

[Apothecary]

two words: agent orange.

[j0atz]

never affected me for some reason..and I know I get in it all the time. My cousin gets it just from being AROUND it...

[devin_707]

I got poison sumac whenever I first started playing disc golf... Not a fun experience. It lasted for about a month. But, I havent gotten it since

[jongoff09]

I would like to know this as well. Also, how much can poison Ivy be taken care of? I used to not be affected by poison ivy, but the last time I came in contact with it was scary...really scary. I am almost fearful of it on the courses now because of that experience.

Definitely let me know if anyone has a way to deal with the parks department about poison ivy. I don't want a fellow DGer (or myself) to get extremely sick if he/she is really allergic to it.

[agent_peebody]

get some of this and put it on before and after a round.



i'm HIGHLY allergic to poison ivy/oak/sumac. if i get even the smallest dot on me, i have to be hospitalized and get steroid shots. and this stuff prevents me from getting it.

for save measure, if i KNOW i touched any poison, i'll also shower and scrub my body with that Technu stuff.

[S.Cann]

I get it fairly easily and had it a couple times this past summer. The best thing I've found is dish detergent with cold water. Sounds weird, but it dried it out pretty well.

[Mr. Plow]

Dude, I'm with you. I get it terrible. Poison ivy, oak, sumac it doesn't matter.

I can tell you as someone who studied horticulture (as did you), when you contact the parks department about the eradication of poison anything they are going to laugh in your face. It's not possible. The only way to get rid of it would be to clear out every green living thing (other than trees maybe) in that particular area and start over from scratch. Unless you live in an area where millions of dollars are allocated for disc course maintenance, it's not feasible.

My best solution: Always wear pants. Always. If that's too much to ask then wear tall socks. Learn to identify the plants, and if you think you touched one on the course wash off that particular area with a strong soap such as Ivory as soon as you get home. The plants have an oil in them, which is what causes the allergic reaction so in washing your skin thoroughly you eliminate the cause of your problems. I wash off my legs when I get home almost every time after I play and I rarely get poison ivy now.

Tecnu is great, but if the rash has already developed there is a product called Poison Ivy Super Dry which works wonders.

http://www.amazon.com/Zytrel-Liquid-...bxgy_hpc_img_b

[woodcutter]

[QUOTE=agent_peebody;658636]get some of this and put it on before and after a round.



^ that stuff is the schiz nit. A-P told me about it once. Best thing since toilet paper

[superberry]

I've erradicated it in traffic areas at Winter Park with the county's approved use of Amine 2, 4-D. It works great, but due to dense root colonies, typically needs two applications before the area is completely clear.

I get poison ivy bad when I'm not careful, working in new areas of the course, making new holes, tees, alternate pin locations, etc. Last spring I was digging in a new tee box in April. No poison ivy was sprouting. It was HOT so I took my shirt off and was handling the clumps of dirt, braced with my forearms, against my body. I got poison ivy SOOOO BAD on my cheast and forearms! It was the work case I ever had and I've had many bad ones, especially in the early years of designing and building the course. Watch out for the roots!

Anyway, I'd approach the parks director directly. Tell them you plan to take care of the posion ivy, ask them if they have an approved herbicide, and then ask if they need to survey the proposed areas and ensure no other threatened or sensitive plants are near. Approach with confidence. I'm sure larger cities are much different to deal with though!