More Poison Ivy in NH This Year?

Turns out, it's not your imagination. An article in BRG describes why this is happening everywhere, and it's not JUST because this year continues to be evil and cursed.

I know that the Poison Ivy around the blackberry bushes is more prevalent than ever at my folks back yard in Gonic. And according to a Professor at UGA, it's all about the increased carbon dioxide in the air.

The plant isn’t mutating or doing anything out of the ordinary itself, but it is growing faster and potentially becoming more potent due to increases in CO2 levels.

 

Plants love CO2, and poison ivy is no different. The more CO2 that is present in the air around us, the more can be used to fuel the growth of the plant.- Dr. Jacqueline Mohan

If I may play Devil's Advocate, (along with my Bachelor's of Arts Degree and 2.4 grade average) aren't the carbon dioxide levels dramatically DROPPING since the majority of folks have been working from home since March? Less cars on the roads would mean less CO2 and therefore less Poison Ivy?

As I delved 'deeper into the weeds' of this study, it turns out that YEARS of research has been done tracking plant growth through the decades and the ever increasingly itchy sprawl keeps crawling at a remarkable rate.

Hopefully, as people continue to work from home and businesses continue to encourage such behavior due to lower operating costs, the troubling trend of Poison Ivy overpowering the landscape will abate a bit and the shiny three leaf monster will return to previous levels of growth.

In the meantime remember, "If there's three, LET THEM BE!"