Have you ever been walking through the woods and suddenly been scared that you've encountered some poison ivy? Yes, Me too. I get it - poison ivy is hard to identify! It can grow as a vine, a small bush or even a low shrub. It can have green or reddish leaves with sometimes bumpy edges. Below are tips you can look for to learn how to identify it for yourself.


 

Leaves of Three...

Everyone knows the classic rhyme of “leaves of three, let it be” which is true (poison ivy does appear to have three leaves) but so do many other common plants.

Poison ivy's three leaves are actually one compound leaf and each "leaf" is actually called a leaflet. On a poison ivy plant, the first two leaflets will always be direct across from each other the stem, while the middle one will have a long stem.

Poison leaves can be either glossy or dull and have smooth or jagged edges. Generally, the color of the leaves changes throughout the seasons from more green to more red, though in the early spring the first growth can also reddish.  

Next time you are out and aren’t sure if its Poison Ivy you just came across just remember these ways to identify it! 

NOT Poison Ivy

There are several other common plants with three leaves that trick people into thinking it's poison ivy. One of the most common is Virginia Creeper. The way to tell it apart from poison ivy is that Virginia Creeper has five leaflets instead of three.

(When I went outside to take pictures for this article I even got confused and thought the Virginia Creeper was Poising Ivy for a moment!)