Things that grow in our yard
Raspberries!
Yay! My favorite fruit!
Things I am NOT so excited are growing in my yard – poison ivy. I am not sure where it is, but it’s gotta be out there.
Before we left for Alaska, Steven had really odd reactions to bug bites on his arms – swelling, some drainage (ew), and it was somewhat spreading like a rash… and getting crusty. Awesome…
I went to the pharmacist and described it to them (as a reaction to bug bites) and got Steven some allergy medicine and cream to help with it. The medicine seemed to dry it up and we figured it was all good.
Then the same thing happened to me when we got back from Alaska. Which is funny, because I was teasing Steven about it happening to him because of his “weak genes.” “You can’t handle living out here in the woods! Neener neener!” But wait a second, now my skin is reacting the same way? What the heck?
So I figured it was some odd bug bite my body had to get used to. Spider bites (ick) I told myself. “That must be why my body is reacting differently.”
Then yesterday, as the spot oozed again, I thought, “Wait. Maybe this isn’t a reaction to a bug bite at all” Light bulb moment! I took a photo of it and sent it to the family poison ivy expert – my mom. “Does this look like poison ivy rash to you?”
She didn’t even text back. She immediately called “Whose arm is that? I hope it’s not yours because they definitely have poison ivy.”
Dammit. It’s mine. (My leg, actually.)
My mom is allergic to poison ivy and has had some HORRIBLE reactions to it, including getting it on her face and in her eyes last year… so I trust that she can spot it. Blah. Now, to try not to scratch it…
But hey, at least if it happens to me and Steven again, I’ll think of it first! And know not to tease him since I had the same reaction!
Themocracy
Melaleuca oil…the BEST poison ivy control item EVER! My family lived in the country and my kids would get it quite often. So I would slather this on them (it stinks), let it dry and the blisters were almost always dried up in a day or two. So if you have in on your property I highly suggest getting some and keeping it on hand. A little goes a long way with it too.
I’ll have to look for it! Did you order it online or get it in the store? My first search shows that a little bottle is a bit $$$ (but I didn’t look much beyond that).
The bottle I got was expensive due to it being a full oz. but this is the same thing and pretty cheap. Like I said a lot goes a long way and I still have most of a bottle and have treated a couple of cases already with it. https://www.amazon.com/Melaleuca-Essential-Undiluted-Therapeutic-Grade/dp/B00FB04B5Y/ref=sr_1_2?s=beauty&ie=UTF8&qid=1467818574&sr=1-2-spons&keywords=melaleuca+oil&psc=1
Cool, thanks for the link!
My mom swears she breaks out by just looking at poison ivy. My dad and I haven’t been affected, but she certainly knows what it looks like.
You must not be allergic!
Oh no! Definitely an occupational hazard of living in the woods, and with so much greenery, it’d probably be tough to find where exactly it’s growing (though it can climb up trees, so that’s something to watch for). I hope your reaction clears up soon! That doesn’t sound like fun at all 🙁
I hope we figure out where it is because we both seem to be getting in to it by accident! I will have to look up the trees – I didn’t think of that!
Oh man, I cringe just thinking about that. I have yet to ever have it but man. I’m sorry! Is it even possible to rout it out or are you just stuck with it?
I think weed killer would kill it!
I am lucky in that poison ivy/oak doesn’t seem to bother me, but I grew up with my brother having severe reactions to it, so I feel for you and Steven. And it truly hides everywhere…
Boo to poison ivy. I’ve only had it once but it was miserable. I hope it clears up soon.
Find that poison ivy and get rid of it! I have never gotten it (knock on wood), but my Mom gets it horribly. We noticed a little patch of it in her field early last summer, but didn’t want to wade through the pricker bushes to get it. By August, it had spread everywhere!
Ugh, blah! I bet it will just spread and spread since we have no control over the forest right now! Blah. Blah blah blah. Ha.
Ack, that’s no good. There’s a lot out by where I live too, but knock on wood I have gotten it as of yet!
Oh no! That sucks…I hope the strange sounding oil helps and that you guys figure out how to stay out of it.
Oh no! That sucks. I have never been in contact with poison ivy. I hope it clears up soon.
That sucks. I’m allergic to poison ivy too though I haven’t had it in years (knock on wood). The summer before I started high school we went on a vacation and I thought I had a spider bite on my eye. It turned out to be poison ivy and my whole face swelled and I couldn’t open my eyes! We end our vacation early and I had to get a steroid shot. Also, be careful if you ever burn brush on your property. My grandma did this with my brother and me when we were kids and we got poison everywhere as a result!
Oh gawd, that is horrible!!! That must have been scary 🙁
Thanks for that tip! Someone else was telling me not to do that too!
I see Staci already mentioned the Melaleuca oil. It works wonders on things like poison ivy.
As for the raspberries, that’s pretty cool you have them growing. We’ve tried to get raspberries to grow here at our house, but they rarely produce anything. And it’s been a good 5 years since we planed them.
Oh man! I wish they would grow for you! They’re so delicious!