[MAIPC] T. radicans

[Susan Gitlin]

Thank you, Jil!

Yes, but it is a noxious weed, so people see it on the Virginia invasive
plant list.  My initial response to her was similar to what you wrote here,
but because we have seen an increase in vine growth due to the additional
carbon dioxide in the air, I was wondering whether anyone had seen a change
in the behavior of poison ivy.

On Mon, Apr 6, 2020 at 9:55 AM Jil Swearingen <jilswearingen at gmail.com>
wrote:

> Hi Susan,
>
> First, poison ivy is a native plant and therefore does not meet the
> definition of invasive (invasive is reserved for non-native species). PI
> fruits provide an important food source for birds and maybe other wildlife
> species. While it climbs up trees and hangs on tight with attachment hairs,
> I have never seen it compromising a tree. It generally sticks to the main
> trunk. It does not scramble over all the side branches like English ivy
> does.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Jil
>
> .............................
> Jil Swearingen
> Invasive Species Consultant
> *In the Weeds*
> 410-200-7085
> https://in-the-weeds.com/
>
>
>
>
> On Mon, Apr 6, 2020 at 9:36 AM Susan Gitlin <
> susan.mclaughlin at alumni.stanford.edu> wrote:
>
>> Hello, folks.
>>
>> I know that poison ivy is a noxious weed, but I believed that was because
>> of harm to human health.  I was not aware that it behaved as an invasive
>> vine, smothering trees a la English ivy.  That would not make sense to me,
>> except in rare cases, because in that case our local ecosystems would have
>> far fewer trees.
>>
>> However, someone today told me that poison ivy smothers and kills trees.
>> Has this always been the case, or is it now happening due to increased
>> carbon dioxide in the air?  If the latter, is climate change converting our
>> native plants into plants that cause ecological harm?
>>
>> If you could share your knowledge on this, I'd appreciate it.
>>
>> Thank you!
>>
>> --Susan
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>>
>
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