Recognizing Poison Ivy, Poison Oak and Poison Sumac before it is too late

In the spring, I was pulling weeds and unknowingly pulled out a ton of poison ivy, oak and/or sumac. Within days I had a widespread rash all over my forearms. I had to get on a plane with this rash. It was not fun or comfortable.
Recognizing poison ivy is something you are supposed to do in the woods, not a suburban backyard. However, mixed into all of the English ivy I was desperate to get rid of, there was in fact another vicious plant just waiting to rub its oils on me. Now that I have experienced the very painful, long-lasting results of a poison ivy encounter, I needed to make sure that I really knew what to look for when we went hiking and explored new areas, or I just wanted to weed my yard again. These are three plants everyone should be aware of, including children, if you like to go outdoors. Never again will I unknowingly walk into these plants.

Ivy

Oak

Sumac

Recognizing Poison Ivy, Poison Oak and Poison Sumac before it is too late