One thing that we have to be careful of around the northeast, is otherwise edible plants, particularly low to the ground, or edible roots being contaminated by proximity to poison ivy. Sometimes, you don't see the poison ivy plant leaves, but, the roots can be running around, and you do one of two things, get it on your hands, or worse, eat something that has some of the oil on it, and your mouth and throat start to swell. Not good.

Last year, we had winter and spring conditions that resulted in a bumper crop of poison ivy.