W_Ivy, Poison

Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes

Poison Ivy Rhus radicans
Family	Cashew (Anacardiaceae)
Bloom	Summer, Fall
Habitat	Meadows, wood edges, dunes
Status	Native
Cycle	Perennial
Height	6-24"
Flower	Flowers are inconspicuous with 5 white petals found in elongated branched clusters.
Leaf	Leaves have 3 shiny leaflets from a common point and are mostly oblong with a point. Color is a shiny green turning to a brilliant red later in the season.
Notes	Fruit is a cluster of white berries. The berries are poisonous. In fact all parts of the plant are poisonous to touch, causing painful itching blisters of the skin. Avoid contact at all times of the year even when the plant is dormant. Smoke from burning plants carries the irritant and can cause the same symptoms as touching the plant. Poison ivy may be erect as individual plants or may climb fences or trees. Most often it creates mats over the surface of the ground.

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