maeve,

are you aware that young jewelweed shoots are a very tasty edible? Preparation and taste are similar to young snap beans.

On Jewelweed and Poison Ivy

Jewelweed is a very, very effective preventative for poison ivy. (I have often wondered if the common bedding impatiens is also, but have no idea.)   Make a very strong decoction of the entire green plant- stems and leaves. Fill a large pot with the plants, cover with cold water and bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer 30-45 minutes. Strain, squeezing as much liquid as you can out of the plants before discarding. Cool and refrigerate in a spray bottle (can also be frozen and thawed, though will begin to lose efficicacy if frozen more than a few months.) Either spray well with it before going out into the woods and weeds, reapplying every few hours, or spray and wipe down with it very thoroughly within 2 hours of exposure. It really works well, and is one of my ex's biggest sellers at the Farmer's Market. He also wholesales it to the local food coop and the local branch of Whole Foods Market.


For the brave of heart, you can also innoculate yourself from poison ivy reactions - same principal as allergy shots. But do be very careful. I In very early spring, when the leaves first emerge and are tiny, start eating one tiny leaf a day. You may get a few blisters in your mouth, but the toxin is very weak at that stage. Keep eating a leaf or two daily as the plant grows for the next month or so.   You will want to stop before the plants reach full potency.   As you continue to eat the leaf, your immunity will build. As noted before, you may get a mild reaction in your mouth at first, but this is unlikely when the leaves are just emerging and very, very small.    As you gradually increase the amount you eat (it will never be more than one or two leaves, and never full size leaves) or as the plants become more potent as they grow, stop for a few days until the rash is gone, then resume at a slightly smaller dose than what caused the rash. (Sometimes people will also get a rash around the rectum, especially if taking in too much, or increasing the dose too quickly. Do the same as for a mouth rash.)

If you are extremely allergic (i.e. can get it from smoke or wind or petting the dog,) be sure you start absolutely as soon as the first leaves peek out, and take only a tiny bite. Do not continue if you get more than a very mild reaction to those first leaves.

This is a pretty radical approach and is not without it's dangers, but my ex and my son are both pretty allergic, but are constantly working in the woods and meadows, digging sassafras or slippery elm, or wild yam roots, etc, and getting into poison ivy roots in the process, which are even more potent than the leaves. It has worked very, very well for them. Over time, the immunity builds up to the point that you need less of it and for a shorter period of time each spring. I can't remember when we started this with my son. We didn't feel comfortable trying it with him as a toddler, but I know we started him on this regime sometime between the ages of 4 1/2 and 5 1/2, and only after we knew he was pretty sensitive to poison ivy. (I rarely react to poison ivy - only when I really wallow in thick patches of it when the dew is heavy or it is wet from rain, or if I have been doing a lot of digging and had contact with the roots. We waited to see if Sum Yung Sun had inherited my relative immunity.)

My ex learned about this approach from an old herb doctor he studied with in WV, "Catfish" Grey. He tried it out of desparation. Some of you know Mr Ex is an herbalist and wildcrafter. You can't do that and not get into poison ivy, and he was quite sensitive to it. One year, early on after he started wildcrafting, he was digging sassafras roots in wet weather and got into a large mass of poison ivy roots. He got it so badly that it entered his bloodstream and he nearly lost a leg. He knew he had to do something, so the following spring started eating it. It worked. He still uses jewelweed after coming in from working in places where it is thick, or if he has been digging where he is likely to have come in contact with roots.

I miss my old garden roses, maeve. I bet your roses are lovely.