July 27th...Yep, I found them. I caught poison oak pretty bad. I'll post pics soon....I also found a plant called jewel weed ,(also known as forget-me-nots) ,that stops the itching! It grows anywhere there is poison. I took these pics while quad riding.
Identifyng Poison Plants
Poison Ivy, Poison oak, and Poison sumac are very hard to identify if you don't know what they look like. I got these pics off the web. I've been searching for the plants. When I find them I'll post them....
Fast Facts
Urushiol Oil is Potent
Only 1 nanogram (billionth of a gram) needed to cause rash
Average is 100 nanograms for most people
1/4 ounce of urushiol is all that is needed to cause a rash in every person on earth
500 people could itch from the amount covering the head of a pin
Specimens of urushiol several centuries old have found to cause dermatitis in sensitive people.
1 to 5 years is normal for urushiol oil to stay active on any surface including dead plants
Derived from urushi, Japanese name for lacquer
When the Japanese restored the gold leaf on the golden Temple in Kyoto, they painted the urushiol lacquer on it to preserve and maintain the gold. Guess you could say that you would be caught red handed if you stole it.
Poison Ivy, Oak, and Sumac
Most common allergy in the country claiming half the population
Sensitivity to urushiol can develop at any time
Solutions or cures are those that annihilate urushiol
Everyone appears to react slightly different to all the remedies.
Covered by workers compensation in some states (CA, for example)
First published records of poison ivy in North America date back to 1600s
Poison Ivy coined by Captain John Smith in 1609
Western Poison Oak discovered by David Douglas (1799-1834) on Vancouver Island. Douglas fir also named after him.
People will serious deficiency in cellular (T-cell) immunity such as AIDS patients may not have problems with dermatitis.
Myths vs. Facts
Myth Fact
Poison Ivy rash is contagious. Rubbing the rashes won't spread poison ivy to other parts of your body (or to another person). You spread the rash only if urushiol oil -- the sticky, resinlike substance that causes the rash -- has been left on your hands.
You can catch poison ivy simply by being near the plants Direct contact is needed to release urusiol oil. Stay away from forest fires, direct burning, or anything else that can cause the oil to become airborne such as a lawnmower, trimmer, etc.
Leaves of three, let them be Poison sumac has 7 to 13 leaves on a branch, although poison ivy and oak have 3 leaves per cluster.
Do not worry about dead plants Urushiol oil stays active on any surface, including dead plants, for up to 5 years.
Breaking the blisters releases urushiol oil that can spread Not true. But your wounds can become infected and you may make the scarring worse. In very extreme cases, excessive fluid may need to be withdrawn by a doctor.
I've been in poison ivy many times and never broken out. I'm immune. Not necessarily true. Upwards of 90% of people are allergic to urushiol oil, it's a matter of time and exposure. The more times you are exposed to urushiol, the more likely it is that you will break out with an allergic rash. For the first time sufferer, it generally takes longer for the rash to show up - generally in 7 to 10 days.
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Plants from around the world that contain the urushiol allergen. [Illustration by Elaine M. Collins]
Urushiol (IPA pronunciation: [ju'ruʃiɔl]) is an oil found in plants of the Family Anacardiaceae, especially Toxicodendron spp. (e.g. poison oak, poison ivy, and poison sumac). It is also found in the nut shell of cashew fruit (Anacardium occidentale). It causes an allergic skin rash on contact, known as urushiol-induced contact dermatitis. The name comes from the Japanese word urushi, which denotes a lacquer produced in East Asia from the sap of kiurushi trees (Lacquer Tree). The oxidation and polymerization of urushiol in the tree's sap in the presence of moisture allows it to form a hard lacquer, which is used to produce traditional Chinese and Japanese lacquerwares.
Urushiol is a yellow liquid with a boiling point of 200-210 °C. It is soluble partially in alcohol and ether, but nearly insoluble in water. Chemically, urushiol is mixture of several closely related organic compounds. Each consists of a catechol substituted with an alkyl chain that has 15 or 17 carbon atoms. The alkyl group may be saturated or unsaturated, urushiol oil is a mixture of the saturated and unsaturated urushiol molecules. The exact mixture depends on the species of the plant. For example, poison oak urushiol contains mostly catechols with C17 side chains, but poison ivy and poison sumac contain mostly catechols with C15 side chains. The allergic reaction is dependent on the degree of unsaturation of the alkyl chain. Less than half of the general population reacts with the saturated urushiol alone, but over 90% react with urushiol containing at least two degrees of unsaturation (double bonds).
POISON IVY
Poison ivy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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For other uses, see Poison ivy (disambiguation).
?Poison ivy
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Sapindales
Family: Anacardiaceae
Genus: Toxicodendron
Species: T. radicans
Binomial name
Toxicodendron radicans
(L.) Kuntze
Poison ivy (Toxicodendron radicans or Rhus toxicodendron), in the family Anacardiaceae, is a woody vine that is well-known for its ability to produce urushiol, a skin irritant that causes an itching rash for most people, technically known as urushiol-induced contact dermatitis. In extreme cases, corticosteroids can be used to treat rashes.
[edit]
Habitat and range
Poison ivy grows vigorously throughout much of North America. It can grow as a shrub up to about 1.2 m (4 ft) tall, as a groundcover 10-25 cm (4-10 in) high, or as a climbing vine on various supports. Older vines on substantial supports send out lateral branches that may at first be mistaken for tree limbs.
Poison ivy is apparently far more common now than when the Europeans first entered North America because it has profited immensely from the "edge effect", enabling it to form lush colonies in such places.
Poison ivy (and oak) rarely grow at altitudes above 5,000 feet (1500 meter).
[edit]
Effects on the body
The reaction caused by poison ivy, urushiol-induced contact dermatitis, is an allergic reaction. For this reason some people claim to be "immune" to its "poisonous" effects. However, sensitivity can develop over time. For those who are affected by it, it causes a very irritating rash. If poison ivy is burned and the smoke then inhaled, this rash will appear on the lining of the lungs, causing extreme pain and possibly fatal respiratory difficulty. If poison ivy is eaten, the digestive tract and airways will be affected, in some cases causing death.
[edit]
Characteristic appearance
The leaves are compound with three almond-shaped leaflets, giving rise to the mnemonic, "Leaves of three, let it be". The berries (actually drupes) are a grayish-white color and are a favorite winter food of some birds.
The color ranges from light green (usually the younger leaves) to dark green (mature leaves), and bright red in fall. The leaflets are 3-12 cm long, rarely up to 30 cm. Each leaflet has a few or no teeth along its edge, and the leaf surface is smooth. To compare, blackberry and raspberry leaves also come in threes, but they have many teeth along the leaf edge, and the top surface of their leaves are very wrinkled where the veins are. The stem and vine are brown and woody, while blackberry stems are green with thorns.
Poison ivy flowers
Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) vine can look like poison ivy. The younger leaves can come in groups of three but have a few more serrations along the leaf edge, and the leaf surface is somewhat wrinkled. Virginia creeper and poison ivy very often grow together, even on the same tree.
Western Poison-oak leaves also come in threes on the end of a stem, but each leaf is shaped somewhat like an oak leaf. Western Poison-oak only grows in the western United States, although many people will refer to poison ivy as poison-oak. This is because poison ivy will grow in either the ivy-like form or the brushy oak-like form depending on the moisture and brightness of its environment. The ivy form likes shady areas with only a little sun, and tends to climb the trunks of trees, and can spread rapidly along the ground.
Blackberry vines bear a passing resemblance to poison ivy, with whose climate they overlap. The chief difference with blackberry vines is that they have spines on them, whereas poison ivy is smooth. Also, the three-leaf pattern of the leaves changes as the plant grows: the two bottom leaves both split into two leaves, for a total of five in a cluster.
Dead poison ivy still has plenty of urushiol, and will cause the same effect. The thick vines of grape, with no rootlets visible differ from the vines of poison ivy, which have so many rootlets that the stem going up a tree looks furry.
POISON OAK
Poison oak (Toxicodendron diversilobum) and its eastern counterpart poison ivy (T. radicans) are two of the most notoriously painful plants in North America. [Note: These species were formerly placed in the genus Rhus.] Although hundreds of scholarly articles have been written, there are probably more myths about these plants than any other native species. Poison oak and poison ivy do not spare age, sex, race or economic status. Each year thousands of people are afflicted with moderate to severe dermatitis from touching the foliage of these plants. Poison oak and poison ivy account for an estimated ten percent of lost work time in the U. S. Forest Service. In fact, hundreds of fire fighters who battle summer and fall blazes in California's coastal ranges are so severely affected that they are unable to work. People who breathe in the smoke and soot may develop serious inflammation of respiratory mucous membranes. Because of the serious economic impact due to lost employment time, poison oak "injuries" are covered by Workers' Compensation Insurance in California. The monetary cost of this affliction is approximately one percent of the state's workers' compensation budget (Epstein, 1994).
Close-up view of poison oak fruits (Toxicodendron diversilobum). Lower right fruits have papery exocarp removed, exposing the inner mesocarp layer striated with black resin canals.
Male flower cluster of poison oak (Toxicodendron diversilobum). The unisexual flowers have 5 fertile stamens and a rudimentary pistil. [Seed-bearing female flowers with sterile stamens typically occur on separate plants.]
Left: basket bush (Rhus trilobata), also referred to by the politically incorrect name of squaw bush; center: poison oak (Toxicodendron diversilobum); right: Baja California poison ivy (T. radicans ssp. divaricatum).
Poison oak
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This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. If an internal link referred you to this page, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.
There is also a page with the title Poison Oak with a captial 'O.'
The name Poison oak refers to various species of the toxicodendron genus that grow in North America.
Western Poison-oak (Toxicodendron diversilobum or Rhus diversiloba) is found only on the Pacific Coast of North America, ranging from southern Canada to Baja California.
Atlantic Poison-oak (Toxicodendron pubescens or Rhus toxicarium) grows mostly in sandy soils in eastern parts of the United States.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poison_oak"
Toxicodendron
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
(Redirected from Poison Oak)
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?Toxicodendron
Toxicodendron radicans
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Sapindales
Family: Anacardiaceae
Genus: Toxicodendron
Miller
Species
See text.
Toxicodendron is a small genus of woody trees, shrubs and vines, all of which produce the skin-irritating oil urushiol, which can cause a severe allergic reaction; hence the scientific name which means "poison tree".
Members of this genus are very often included in the genus Rhus. As genetic studies show that Rhus without Toxicodendron is paraphyletic, this is the better treatment to follow botanically, but there is some practical convenience in having the highly allergenic species listed separately.
They have pinnately compound, alternate leaves and whitish or grayish drupes. The best known member is poison-ivy, practically ubiquitous throughout much of North America.
The plants are quite variable in appearance. The leaves may have smooth, toothed or lobed edges, and all three types of leaf edge may be present in a single plant. The plants grow as creeping vines, climbing vines, shrubs, or, in the case of Lacquer Tree and Poison Sumac, as trees. While leaves of Poison-ivy and poison-oaks usually have three leaflets, sometimes there are five or, occasionally, even seven leaflets. Leaves of Poison Sumac have 7-13 leaflets, and of Lacquer Tree, 7-19 leaflets.
The common names are somewhat misleading. Technically, the plants do not contain a poison; they contain a potent allergen. Poison-oak is not an oak (Quercus, family Fagaceae) at all, although leaves in some plants bear a resemblance to oak leaves; nor is poison-ivy an ivy (Hedera, family Araliaceae) despite the superficially similar growth form. Both are members of the sumac family, Anacardiaceae.
[edit]
Avoidance, treatment, and safety
For specific information on prevention and treatment of Toxicodendron rashes, see Urushiol-induced contact dermatitis.
[edit]
Species of Toxicodendron
Western Poison-oak (Toxicodendron diversilobum or Rhus diversiloba) is found only on the Pacific Coast of North America, ranging from southern Canada to Baja California. It is extremely common in that region, where it is the predominant species of the genus. Extremely variable, it grows as a dense shrub in open sunlight, or as a climbing vine in shaded areas. Like poison-ivy, it reproduces by creeping rootstocks or by seeds. The leaves are divided into three leaflets, 35-100 mm long, with scalloped, toothed, or lobed edges. Californians learn to recognize it by the rhyme "leaves of three, let it be". The leaves may be red, yellow, green, or some combination of those colors, depending on various factors, such as the time of year.
Asian Poison-ivy (Toxicodendron orientale or Rhus orientale) is very similar to the American Poison-ivy, and replaces it throughout east Asia (so similar that some texts treat it as just a variety of the American species).
Potanin's Lacquer Tree or Chinese Varnish Tree (Toxicodendron potaninii or Rhus potaninii) from central China, is similar to T. vernicifluum but with (usually) fewer leaflets per leaf. Growing up to 20 m tall, like T. vernicifluum it is used for lacquer production. The leaves have 7-9 leaflets.
Poison-ivy (Toxicodendron radicans or Rhus radicans) is extremely common in some areas of North America. In the United States it grows in all states except Alaska, Hawaii, California and Nebraska, but it is much less common than Poison-oak in western North America. It also grows in Central America. Appearing as a creeping vine, a climbing vine, or a shrub, it reproduces both by creeping rootstocks and by seeds. The appearance varies. Leaves, arranged in an alternate pattern, usually in groups of three, are from 20 to 50 mm long, pointed at the tip, and may be toothed, smooth, or lobed, but never serrated. Leaves may be shiny or dull, and the color varies with the season. Vines grow almost straight up rather than wrapping around their support, and can grow to 8-10 m in height. In some cases, Poison-ivy may entirely engulf the supporting structure, and vines may extend outward like limbs, so that it appears to be a Poison-ivy "tree".
Western Poison-ivy (Toxicodendron rydbergii or Rhus rydbergii) is found in northern parts of the eastern United States. It also exists in the western United States and Canada, but is much less common than Poison-oak. It may grow as a vine or a shrub. It was once considered a subspecies of Poison-ivy. It does sometimes hybridize with the climbing species. Western Poison-ivy is found in much of western and central United States and Canada, although not on the West Coast. In the eastern United States it is rarely found south of New England.
Wax Tree (Toxicodendron succedaneum or Rhus succedanea), a native of Asia, although it has been planted elsewhere, most notably Australia and New Zealand. It is a large shrub or tree, up to 8 m tall, somewhat similar to a sumac tree. Because of its beautiful autumn foliage, it has been planted outside of Asia as an ornamental plant, often by gardeners who were apparently unaware of the dangers of allergic reactions. It is now officially classified as a noxious weed in Australia and New Zealand.
Atlantic Poison-oak (Toxicodendron pubescens or Rhus toxicarium) grows mostly in sandy soils in eastern parts of the United States. Growing as a shrub, its leaves are in groups of three. Leaves are typically rounded or lobed, and are densely haired. Poison-ivy shrubs are sometimes mistaken for, or simply called, Atlantic Poison-oak. (Atlantic Poison-oak has small clumps of hair on the veins on the underside of the leaves, while Poison-ivy does not).
Lacquer Tree or Varnish Tree (Toxicodendron vernicifluum or Rhus verniciflua) grows in Asia, especially China and Japan. Growing up to 20 m tall, its sap produces an extremely durable lacquer. The leaves have 7-19 leaflets (most often 11-13). The sap contains the allergenic oil, urushiol. Urushiol gets its name from this species which in Japanese is called Urushi. Other names for this species include Japanese lacquer tree, Japanese Varnish Tree and Japanese Sumac (Note: the term "varnish tree" is also occasionally applied to the Candlenut, Aleurites moluccana, a southeast Asian tree unrelated to Toxicodendron).
Poison Sumac (Toxicodendron vernix or Rhus vernix) grows exclusively in very wet or flooded soils, in swamps and peat bogs in parts of eastern North America, especially in the coastal plains and the Great Lakes region. It is a tall shrub or a small tree, from 2-7 m tall. It reproduces by seeds. The leaves have between 7-13 leaflets that resemble a feather.
NO PICTURE OF POISON SUMAC,, YET.......
Poison Sumac
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
?Poison Sumac
Poison Sumac leaves
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Magnoliopsida
Order: Sapindales
Family: Anacardiaceae
Genus: Toxicodendron
Species: T. vernix
Binomial name
Toxicodendron vernix
Kuntze
Poison Sumac (Toxicodendron vernix or Rhus vernix) is a woody shrub growing to 3 m tall. All parts of the plant contain a toxic resin called urushiol that causes skin and mucous membrane irritation to humans. When burned and inhaled, the smoke causes diarrhea and other internal irratations. The leaves are pinnate, 25-50 cm long, with 7 - 13 leaflets; the leaflets are 4-10 cm long and sometimes mistaken for individual leaves. The veins from which the leaflets grow are always red. The fruit is a small white or grey berry, produced in panicles 10-20 cm long; this distinguishes it from other sumacs which have red berries.
Poison Sumac
Poison sumac grows exclusively in very wet or flooded soils, usually in swamps and peat bogs, in the eastern United States and Canada.
In the U.S., it can grow as far west as Wisconsin, where it is found only in the southern part of the state. In the U.S., it is listed under the Federal Noxious Weed Act of 1974, as amended (7 U.S.C. 2801 et seq.), as a "noxious weed".
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