Updated  Aug 07

The poison ivy detection kit consists of two items, this direction, and three strips of testing paper which are sensitive to urushiol.

Your will also need, an old pair of scissors that will become contaminated with the ivy sap. Discard them after use or put them in a secure location. Disposable latex gloves work well but are fragile. If you are just doing a couple of tests, a plastic grocery will work, but is awkward when using scissors.

The irritating compound in poison ivy, urushiol, is contained in the sap of the plant. You can contact the sap directly as in weeding or secondary contact by tools or pets. The leaves of two ivy plants twenty feet apart will often look like different plants. Variations in size, shape, and leaf edging are all possible. The commonality is always the three leaves, two opposing leaves with the third leaf, which has a much longer leaf stem, extending forward from the pair. This test gives us certainly what is and is not poison ivy. If you are testing multiple sites you should number the sap lines drawn and note the location of that number.

To test, cut the leaf stem or the leaf cluster stem and wait THIRTY SECONDS a small bit of sap should appear then wipe the sap on the test paper for one half inch. If you have poison ivy the line you drew will turn brown within minutes and turn black within 30 minutes. The poison sumac I have tested turns the test strip brown. The color green doesn't count, some plants bleed chloroplast when cut. When testing multiple sites it may be possible to get light trace lines, false positives, due to scissor contamination. Remove excess sap by cutting paper other than the test strips. When finished testing dispose of your cuttings and gloves in plastic grocery bags and then into the trash. Wash your hands well with laundry or dish soap. Do not composed or burn poison plants.

If you are going to remove poison ivy put it a restricted area, bury it, or bag it well so your trash haulers will not come into contact with it. It has been reported the active compounds in poison ivy can last for two years after being cut. I cannot verify that report! I suspect the urushiol compounds are still present, but they are dehydrated and therefore present a diminished threat. 

If you are going to work on the removal of poison ivy, down load my suggestions at poisonivydetection.com . Input to me, positive or negative can be done can be done at davidboot@mei.net.
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