click photo for full-size image
photo by Donald Kinney
Pretty sometimes, but this has got to be one of the most evil plants on the face of the planet -- right up there with nettles...
When I was a little kid I got poison oak so badly that it spread to my face, swelling one eye shut for a few days. Since then I've been extremely careful to avoid it, and maybe I've built up some sort of immunity because of that exposure, but I don't think I've had it since. Poison oak always grows with three leaves per stem -- watch out!
Now, nettles are bad characters too -- our variety (growing to a height of six or eight feet) only grow in the immediate vicinity of riverbanks, but that's where I like to hang out. Nettles sting like a wasp, and the sensation doesn't go away for hours -- truly an evil plant in my book.
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10 comments:
Why is such an evil plant so pretty?
As I child, I had MANY cases of poison ivy and oak like yours--with eye/s swollen shut. Horrible. I only got it once a year, but next year I was fair game again. And avoiding it didn't help; th pets brought it to me. I'm itching just looking at that picture.
I don't live near any now, so it's not a concern, but if I go to the right places, I still get a minor case of it.
Great picture, horrible stuff.
Hubby and I went for a hike yesterday and saw lots of the evil plant just showing its color.
I sure try to stay away from it.
Nice shot of a much-cursed plant highlighted by the sun.
I am not allergic and have never had a reaction. However, I still try to avoid it. They say that one's reaction to the poisonous plants can change. Why tempt fate?
hmmmmmmmm.........
Sorta reminds "Louis" of his ex-wife, a.k.a. "World War I," quite the contrast to the very dear Mme. la Vache!
So that's what poison oak looks like. I've never seen it before - it didn't grow in our area before I moved (I'm in the middle of the city now). We did have nettles, though nothing that tall. I never got too much of a reaction from them, thankfully. Nettles, at least, have food and medicinal values.
A.
6 to 8 feet?!! Wow!!! I've seen(close up and personal, unfortunately) a lot of what you call "nettles" I think, in the countryside in France when I was a kid, but i don't think they ever reached 8 ft! They were short, nastly little things, usually they bit before you could notice you were walking in it. On the other hand, I count myself lucky because I've never had poison oak or poison ivy even though the dog used to roll in it. Thanks for the warning, I'm not sure I would know what to look for.
(I had an "aawwwwwwww" moment with the teaser picture, but I'll tell you why later - that was a teaser comment, I suppose? ;)
Oh my gosh. I cant believe someone else took a shot of poison oak. I did by mistake.. not knowing what it was and everyone thought I was nuts!! I feel much better now knowing other have taken shots of the very cool plant. You have a terrific blog. Aloha, Renee :) :)
For a plant that you dislike so much you sure made it look pretty and approachable!
Oh, this is so beautiful...! You caught the light perfectly
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