My mom would be so proud of me....

My mom, born in 1920, grew up on a farm during the depression and even when the depression was over, things were financially challenging. Mom was practical, frugal, creative and hardworking. Since summer is upon us my chores turn to mowing (the manor as it is lovingly called) which is an all weekend event. The front lawns aren't so bad but mowing around all those apple trees with their lovely draping of poison ivy is another story.

I thought I was being very very careful but apparently I wasn't because come Monday morning I had itchies up and down my arms and I was starting to see little bumps beginning to appear which I knew would soon become blisters etc etc. Since I wasn't going to spend the week scratching - a big no-no and I certainly wasn't go to spend money on some sort of concoction at the local pharmacy, I turned to my ever present knowledgable one - my APPLE - she always has a good answer.

 What I found really surprised me and that is what brings me back to my dear mom. You see when ever my sister or I stepped on a nail, or got stung with a bee, or had a few too many black fly bites or fill in the blank she would get out the gallon jug of CLOROX. Yes sir, that was her cure all for just about everything. So, while researching remedies for my itchies, one of them was to wash the affected area with straight CLOROX.

 My first response was, come on, don't tell me my mom was right all along. But with the itching getting to the unbearable stage I was ready to try anything. And guess what..... ta da.. it worked. Once at night and then again in the morning and well the itchies are history. Now I know that one time doesn't make good scientific evidence but I know what I'll do the next time I get caught in the ivy patch.

Following is a nice web site so I won't hear,  "but I didn't know it was poison ivy."

NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION has a nice web site with photos and great descriptions about poison ivy and poison oak.

Some other plants we have learned to stay away from through our many travels.

This is HOGWEED.  It really is a beautiful looking plant.  Big leaves and large white flowers.  And that's what I thought we we gathered the seeds from it on our way home from Old Forge one year.  Spread them in the back of the orchard and then......found out what they really were.  Not a good idea. 

You might not recognize this plant but if you have weeded a garden and ended up with itchy buring stinging fingers you have found STINGING NETTLE.  Dried and encapsulated it has tremendous healing properties but in its natural state it a touch me not no no plant.

Another nice flower that grows along the roadside and looks pretty in a wildflower bouquet is WILD PARSNIP and can be really nasty to some people, leaving blisters and then brown marks that can last for weeks or months.  We found out about this nasty little weed when one of my boys was playing outside shirt less.  Three weeks later when he went for a well child visit the doctor looked at the marks quite suspiciously.  You see they were little 1/4" circles that looked like cigarette burns scars.  Fortunately, he believed my explanation of what caused them.