Poison ivy and other weeds

Facebook post from a Happy Homeowner:

Note to self: next time I go on a mission to eradicate poison ivy with a brushwhacker, I should wear disposable full body suit. I am itching more than a crackhead looking for another fix.

There are commercially available weed killers. Several claim to work well to eradicate poison ivy. Some are quite bad for the world when they get into the ground water or into our food supply. Roundup is the one that most people love to hate.

Since many of our clients will not use products like Roundup, there are non-toxic recipes available. Most of them have a combination of vinegar, salt, and dish soap. Here’s an example.

When tested on my extensive Somerville acreage, (tongue leaving cheek), I found that this works. I have been using it on what one of my clients calls “that evil vine.” (Bittersweet is trying to take over.)

The nice thing about this formula is that the runoff doesn’t hurt anything and the plants around the offending weeds can handle a little bit of the vinegar mix, if it spreads a little during a rainstorm.