Found out most poison ivy leaves aren't actually 'leaves of three'

I was pulling weeds in my backyard in Nashville last weekend and saw a plant with five leaflets. I almost grabbed it bare-handed until I remembered something from a ranger talk at the state park. Turns out, the old saying 'leaves of three, let it be' only covers the juvenile form. I looked it up on the USDA plant database and learned poison ivy can have 5, 7, or even 9 leaflets on mature vines. Has anyone else been tricked by the leaf count on these things?

3 comments

3 Comments

hannah_wells15d ago

Oh I've been there too! It's honestly a little scary how different the mature vines look compared to the little baby plants. The whole "leaves of three" thing feels almost like a trap now, doesn't it?

fiona_carr2615d ago

Right?! That's wild, they have disguises.

the_robin15d agoMost Upvoted

Isn't it funny how all those simple rules we learn turn out to be lies, @hannah_wells?