Recognizing Poison Ivy Plants
Part of
enjoying camping and other recreation in the great outdoors
means knowing a little about your environment. Not everything
in nature is good for you. Poison ivy is one example. Here are
some basic facts about the appearance of
poison ivy
plants and
what can happen if you come in contact with
them.
Many people
are not aware that poison ivy can actually come
in three different forms. In some parts of the country, the
plant will be a fully developed shrub that will intermingle
with other forms of flora and fauna. This can sometimes make
distinguishing poison ivy from the surrounding plants, which in
turn increases the risk of being infected.
Along with
appearance as a shrub, poison ivy may also appear as a creeping
vine that is attached to tree trunks and limbs. When this is
the case, poison ivy may appear to be one of several innocuous
types of vines that are found in the forest. However, brushing
up against the vine and crushing some of the leaves is an easy
way to contract poison ivy quickly.
Finally,
poison ivy plants can also creep along as vines along the
forest floor. The vines may intermingle with other forms of
ground cover, which will make it that much more difficult to
distinguish the poison ivy leaves from other greenery. This is
one reason that you should always wear footwear while in the
forest. Also, it is a good idea to always take along a blanket
or some other form of covering before spreading out a picnic on
the ground.
One final
thing to keep in mind about poison ivy plants is that all of
them will have one common characteristic. In all examples of
poison ivy, the leaves will grow in a configuration of three
leaves. This means that even if the exact shape of the leaves
may look a great deal like surrounding plants, this three-leaf
configuration will always be a sure sign.
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