Will the Real Poison Sumac Please Step Forward?
Monday August 25, 2008
Thanks to climate change and some help from the birds, poison ivy has become a bigger pest than ever. Most gardeners are familiar with our 3-leaved nemesis, but poison sumac may still be a mystery.
Many people think all sumac is poisonous or at least a skin irritant. Except for the occasional individual, that’s not the case. You can plant the beautiful staghorn variety, at right, or let the weedier sumacs grow and feed the birds without concern for your own safety. However there is one species of sumac, Toxicodendron vernix syn. Rhus vernix, that contains the same resin, urushiol, that makes poison ivy so unpleasant. About’s Guide to Landscaping, David Beaulieu, provides us with a photo gallery, to help identify and avoid poison sumac. And if you’re not so luck, here are some tips from our Guide to Pediatrics, Vince Iannelli, on how to get some relief.
Photo: © Marie Iannotti (2008) licensed to About.com, Inc.
Comments
Hi
your first point is a good one… its climate and birds…things like this will happen more and more. . We have too little money to fix EVERYTHING that climate breaks. Triage is applied in an emergency to allow the most globally beneficial use of inadequate resources. There will be severe climate disruptions, which will be left untreated because they will be recognized as able to recover autonomously. Selected climatically-induced emergencies where tax-payers’ money can reduce suffering will be funded. Last, and most sadly, there may be even situations where unlimited funds cannot reverse impacts and the limited funds are deemed better deployed on other projects for more go to www.climatechangetriage.net
When I try to look at the photos of the poison sumac, the link just sends me back to your home page. What’s up?
You’re right, there was an error in the link that was in the text. It’s fixed now.
There are also usually links to the same document in the blog title and the photo, in case that should happen again. (Which I hope it won’t.)