Stinging Plants

MKern

MKern

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Sep 11, 2006
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I have a question for you guys.

I slipped today while fishing and caught myself on the streams brush along the bank. When I did, some plant jabbed me and a couple places. It felt like a thistle, but after a minute or so it starting stinging really bad. After about 10 minutes it welted up. An for the rest of the day had had moments of tightness and extreme pain. It wasn't nettles or witch hazel.

Have you guys ever experienced something like this and what could it be.
 
When I was a volunteer at a state park this summer I was involved in looking for Invasive species. There is a plant called giant hog weed that can cause a reaction like this. I have no way of knowing if this is what it is but you may be able to look it up on the DCNR web site. This reaction can become serious so if it gets too bad you should have it checked out.
 
I had a plant do this to me last year on two occassions while I was trimming shooting lanes for hunting. I took a picture of the bush and posted it on another forum. I was told my picture was spicebush and that there was no way that this plant would cause this kind of reaction so maybe there was something mixed in with it that I didn't see. For me it started my hand would get this real painful stinging feeling then it would get all bumpy then about 12 or so hours later it itched like crazy and would itch for about 5 days then just disappear.

It probably isn't spicebush which has little red berries like things on them.
 
McKern & Pap-Paw,

Thanks for the info on this. If you Google "Giant Hogweed" you can find lots of info about it, and photos.

From what I’ve read so far, it is pretty common in PA, and is mostly found along streambanks. And it can be quite serious. Some of the sites showed pictures of the effects on people’s skin, and it ain’t pretty. Some of the sites also said that if it gets in your eyes it can cause blindness.

Also, PA Dept. of Agriculture site listed this Giant Hogweed hotline. If you spot these plants, give them a call. You might want to call the local county Conservation District as well. The websites said that the way to get rid of it is to use Roundup. Hotline: 1-877-464-9333

For us fishermen, I think this is sometime to learn more about and be careful of. Many times when fishing I encounter heavy brush, I get impatient and just crash through it. Most of the time, that isn’t a problem. But if you did that with this Giant Hogweed you might end up in the intensive care ward.

Thanks again, guys. I guess you really can learn stuff on the Internet. If anyone else has encountered this plant, please let us know.
 
It might have been giant hogweed. It's so hard to tell because all of the plants were squished down from the previous snow.
But now that you mention it, I have seen that before and probably got stung by it, I don't remember. Is abnesia a side effect????
By the way, I hate nettles, the ones that sting you when brookie fishing. It scares so many fish when you are jumping around screaming and itching.
 
If you see giant hogweed, make the phone call. From what I've read there seems to be a serious effort to eradicate it.
 
try wading wet in a back bay for stripers and get oyster drillers, they itch and go right to the bone..goto be in a muddy area though..
 
It's called Burn Hazel. It's along many SEPA stream.
 
That is almost definitely not Giant Hogweed. I have worked with it and it is extremely rare in Pa. That is why the dept. of Ag is working with it and trying to eradicate it. I know we do have it in Potter County in the Carter Camp area down to Hungry Hollow Road. If you got into Giant Hogweed you would know because it burns your skin and needs treatment. Also, Hogweed grows very tall, hence the name Giant Hogweed. In June/July when we treated it it was mostly over my head and I am 6 foot four. Anyhow, probably something else.
 
I've gotten stung by plants that I always just called "itchweed". I got it pretty bad along the juniata one day. I always get in the crap down in Shenandoah too. Scares the hell out of you when you're stalking trout, especially when the park rangers just got done warning you about rattlesnakes.
 
Good ole itchweed! Haven't encounter that stuff since I was a kid, the memories!!! I watched my brother crash his bicycle in to a patch of that stuff, he was wearing a pair of shorts and nothing else!! It's rather funny now that I think about, but he was sure was in a lot of AGONY!!!!!

JH
 
MKern says is wasn’t nettles. And nettles are so common that I’m assuming that MKern knows what they are. Burn hazel is the same thing as nettles. Itchweed probably is another name for nettles, from the description. Unpleasant stuff, but the sting goes away after awhile. Sounds like this hogweed can mess you up.

If giant hogweed is in the Kettle Creek area, I don’t see why it couldn’t be found in Mifflin County. The Ohio site below said that it is widespread in PA. And the PA ag site has info about it, so they must be on the case.

The info below is from: http://ohioline.osu.edu/anr-fact/hogweed.html

“Giant hogweed plants form a dense canopy and displace many native and non-native species. Lack of detection of the rosette stage of this species has underscored the extent of the giant hogweed establishment in Pennsylvania and New York where it is widespread.
The sap of giant hogweed can cause severe burns on the skin.
Figure 2. The sap of giant hogweed can cause severe burns on the skin.

Stream bank areas have the greatest potential to produce large infestations as water is an important link to giant hogweed establishment and proliferation. Ohio’s population of giant hogweed is primarily found in Northeast Ohio especially the counties bordering Pennsylvania.”
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
There is also a pdf on hogweed in Pa at the following website, but I have an ancient computer and slow connection, so couldn’t download it. Maybe it would have more info about the distribution in PA.

http://www.agriculture.state.pa.us/agriculture/cwp/view.asp?q=128383
 
It is my understanding that nettles, witch hazel, burn weed, and itch weed are the same thing and have different names based on what region you live in.
A buddy and I had this discussion/argument once about this plant, so I looked it up once we got back from fishing. It said nettels has common names like witch hazel, etc.

This plant wasn't that plant. This coming form somebody who gets stung by nettles/itch weed dozens of times per year, this mysterious plant didn't feel the same.
The pain lasted the rest of the night and was tingly in the morning. The pain and irritation was so bad I had to roll up my jacket sleeve. The injection sites of the "thorns" swelled up like a bee sting, but subsided after about 30 minutes.

It probably wasn't hogweed because it was on the ground around and under other plants. Not really taking over the area...well not yet.

Who knows, it could be something that just I and allergic to. Or it could have been thistles and the other plants mixing when I got stuck.

The mystery continues...
 
If you drop dead, send your rods this way. I'll see to it that they get a good home. :-D

Seriously though... has it cleared up yet?

I did get in something at spring creek one day and it didn't really give me an instant sting really. I knew something got me because it itched and burned, but there was no point of contact sting. I just got a nasty rash within the next ten or fifteen minutes, and it looked like it was spreading with my sweat. I had to take a dip in the creek that day, and go shirtless for a while since it appeared that my clothes were contaminated with whatever it was.
 
Yea it's cleared up. It lasted till I went to sleep that night (I got stuck at about noon that day).
There was a slight tingle the next morning until the early afternoon.

Next time I'm just falling; screw catching myself.
 
Mkern, Based on what you said, I seriously doubt it was giant hogweed. If it was, be thankful you got into it in the winter and not in the summer. The way i understand it, the sap is like the opposite of sun block. If you get the sap on you, along with moisture (from sweat), the UV from the sun burns you big time.

Also, contrary to what has been said, it is not common in most of PA. Reds is correct. Here is a link to a brochure by the PA Dept of Ag.

http://ashtabula.osu.edu/ag/Adobe/PAhogweedbrochure.pdf

The majority of counties have had no reported sites of the stuff. I live in Ashtabula County in Ohio and we have it here; however, I have not found any on my property. It is more common up north of me. It is good that the word is getting out on this stuff. It can mess you up, and is very hard to get rid of the plant once it gets established.

It could be that you got into a relative of the stuff. Believe it or not, it is a member fo the parsley family. So are carrots. All of them have huge roots.

I stumbled on info by accident awhile back. Scary stuff. I have a problem with a huge weed that has a similar stem and root system (only the stem is smooth), but luckily it is not the same plant. Leaves are quite different, but I'm guessing it is related. Freakin tap roots are often a couple feet long. Very hard to get rid of.

Edit: I found out why some people said it is common in PA. The Ohio page refered to PA as a hotspot for the weed.

http://ashtabula.osu.edu/ag/Adobe/hogweed.htm

It is still not all that common outside of a couple places and hasn't been found at all in the majority of counties. Keep an eye out for it. It is hard to miss once you are aware of it.
 
these are all more good reasons not to wet wade.

tl
les
 
lestrout wrote:
these are all more good reasons not to wet wade.
tl
les
Click to expand...

Well, thats not really relevant since it sounds like her got when trying to catch himself from falling...and it happened out of the water...now the fact that it happened in December might lend to not wet wading but some people are so paranoid...

Just to be clear Mkern..what part of you body was this on and were you wet wading in December?...I hate making a case against something that has nothing to do with a topic.
 
For the record it was out of water and the part of my that was affected was my hand (between a couple finders) and my wrist.

And no I wasn't wet wading.
 
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