Frequently Asked Questions

Our process starts with us coming to your property to give you a quote. If you decide to move forward with our services, you are then put on a waiting list in the order in which people have accepted our services.
Because our treatment is weather dependent, we need to make sure no rain is in the forecast. We do not build the cost of wasted time or product into the quote so we have to make sure the weather is conducive for treatment. Therefore, we typically text you the night before we come out to treat. If, the following morning, the weather changes including greater than 20% chance of rain in the forecast, we will have to wait until the chance of rain falls below 20% before treatment can commence. In addition, if the night before the weather shows it is not conducive to treatment but changes the morning of, you may get a text the day of treatment. We ask your patience as we respond to what the weather does. Please make sure any lawn sprinkler systems are turned off the night before or full eradication cannot be guaranteed.

When we come out to give you a quote, we draw a map of your property that includes pertinent instructions and locations of poison ivy to be treated. Therefore you do not have to be home when we come out for treatment.

Our process involves two treatments. The first treatment will typically kill 85%-95% of the poison ivy. The second treatment is essentially an “Easter egg hunt” to kill individual poison ivy missed on the first treatment or plants needing a second treatment to completely kill them.

Some properties require a third treatment. The third treatment is recommended in areas of weakened poison ivy from treatments from store- bought herbicides not strong enough for complete eradication. Or, in areas with seed bearing vines to eradicate seedlings that germinate the following year. Or, where poison ivy has been disturbed. Examples of activities that disturb poison ivy are stump grinding, digging, weeding, weed whacking, mowing poison ivy, etc.

Leaves of poison ivy are then carefully treated with an herbicide. Broadcast spraying can take place but only in areas of dense poison ivy coverage or in areas of invasive vines protecting poison ivy underneath. Where poison ivy vines are growing up trees, the vines are cut and then painted and/or injected with a herbicide concentrate which will translocate into the root killing the plant without harming the trees.
We guarantee that at least 98% of the poison ivy will be eradicated in areas we treat. Typically, we eradicate over 99.5% of all poison ivy. If we miss any poison ivy, we will return as many times as required to satisfy our customer’s expectations within the guarantee period.

YES! Our eradicators have been licensed, trained and continue their education on the latest recommendations on how to apply herbicides, in the most environmentally friendly manner, through the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR). Their mission is to, “… cultivate a robust and equitable agricultural economy, promote a safe and resilient food system, and preserve a healthy environment for Massachusetts’ farmers, animals, and consumers” (MDAR- Source 1).

YES! We are also insured.

Source List:
1. Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR)- https://www.mass.gov/orgs/
massachusetts-department-of-agricultural-resources
2. Mass.gov- https://www.mass.gov/doc/pesticide-examination-and-license-information-bulletin/
    download

YES! We are also knowledgable on how to eradicate Japanese knotweed, bittersweet, autumn olive as well as other invasive vegetation.

There are two significant reasons why we use an herbicide. First, in our experience, the people who tend to get the worst poison ivy rashes are those who have pulled the vines, either out of the ground or off of trees. Pulling involves breaking the larger vines which releases high concentrations of Urushiol which, at smaller concentrations, is what gives people the painfully itchy rash.

Our applicators, when working, contend with ticks, mosquitos, painful thorny vegetation, bees, difficult terrain in usually very hot and humid temperatures. We would not want to also expose them also to the potential of harm that would happen from removing poison ivy via pulling. We prefer to use an herbicide. Using an herbicide is the fastest, safest and most dependable way to permanently eradicate poison ivy from a property.

Our experience has also shown that poison ivy, when pulled, leaves behind broken off roots that ultimately regrow. We have had a number of customers who have called us after they have paid someone to pull their poison ivy. It is very hard to get all of the poison ivy roots when it is pulled and those left behind can not be seen and thus regrow. The same with people who have paid to bring goats on their property to eat poison ivy. The hardy roots of poison ivy will send up leaf shoots once the goats are gone leaving customers calling us if they want permanent eradication. Again, we feel using an herbicide is the fastest, safest and most dependable way to permanently eradicate poison ivy from a property.

Our preferred herbicide is glyphosate. When applied at the correct concentration and in the correct way, glyphosate gets absorbed by the leaves, travels through the plant to the roots where it inhibits the production of an enzyme necessary for plant growth. The plants that are properly treated absorb the glyphosate through their leaves where it translocates down and impedes the plant from making essential amino acids needed to live. This causes the plant to die completely, roots and all, and will never return.

When we complete our treatments, we guarantee in writing that if you find any live poison ivy for the rest of the year or the following year, we will return and re-treat the area at no additional cost to our customers. We will return as many times as necessary, within the guarantee period, to fulfill our promise of a poison ivy free area in the areas we treat! Though many of our customers enjoy a poison ivy free yard for several years longer than that!

You can find internet or social media “experts” for nearly every position on virtually any subject you can think of. This is certainly true for glyphosate. It probably doesn’t need to be said that we believe glyphosate is safe or we wouldn’t use or advocate its use. Why? Because we believe that science matters. We rely on the latest legitimate science and evidence-based, peer- reviewed studies. We tend to trust sources listed on world respected cites (such as WHO, EFSA, Etc), governmental websites (.gov means its put out by the U.S. government) as well as websites connected to credible conservation schools or agricultural colleges or universities, conducting real scientific studies.

We invite you to check out the many scientific sources we have listed on our website and judge for yourself. The actual scientific sources utilized in the writing are listed at the bottom of the answer to each question with the website address to the source itself included.

To start, we believe glyphosate is not harmful to humans because our applicators, who treat with glyphosate, when mixing, applying, etc, are regularly exposed to much higher concentrations of an herbicide than our customers. This level of exposure is considered well within recommended guidelines. Here are some quotes from trusted sources.

“Exposure to workers and other applicators generally is not expected to pose undue risks, due to glyphosate’s low acute toxicity.” (Source 1: Environmental Protection Agency)

“Glyphosate has lower acute toxicity to humans than 94% of all herbicides and many common household chemicals, including vinegar and table salt. Glyphosate also has lower chronic toxicity to humans than 90% of all herbicides.” (Source 4: Penn State).

These findings have been supported by the World Health Organization (Source 5), the European Food Safety Authority (Source 2) and other studies on the National Institute of Health’s website (Source 3).

To be sure, there is an ongoing debate on the safety to humans of any chemical in widespread use… including organic ones. What is not debatable is that people can be quite harmed by poison ivy. This evidence presents itself regularly.

It is more likely that you would be harmed by developing an allergic reaction to poison ivy either through direct (personal contact) or indirect exposure (via pet, tool, etc.).
Ultimately, you will need to decide on whether the benefits outweigh the potential risks for you and your family.\

Source List:
1. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)- https://www3.epa.gov/pesticides/chem_search/
reg_actions/reregistration/fs_PC-417300_1-Sep-93.pdf)

2. European Food Safety Authority (EFSA)- https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/press/news/151112

3. National Institute of Health’s, National Library of Medicine- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ books/NBK591692/table/ch2.tab13/

4. Penn State Extension- https://extension.psu.edu/glyphosate-roundup-understanding-risks- to-human-health#:~:text=Glyphosate%20has%20lower%20acute%20toxicity,90% %20of%20all%20herbicides1
5. World Health Organization (WHO)- https://cdn.who.int/media/docs/default-source/food- safety/jmpr/jmpr-summary-report-may2016.pdf?sfvrsn=48625631_5

Glyphosate is a post emergent, systemic broad-spectrum herbicide with no residual soil activity. The plants that are properly treated absorb the glyphosate through their leaves where it translocates down and impedes the plant from making essential amino acids needed to live. This causes the plant to die completely, roots and all, and will never return. It is non- selective – meaning it can potentially kill most green plants that get it on their leaves.

Poison ivy is one plant for which glyphosate is particularly effective at controlling. Unlike many herbicides, glyphosate is NOT active in the soil. It does not get absorbed through the roots to impact plants so it is safe to plant immediately in areas treated.

In terms of environmental impact, glyphosate, when used in concentrations according to labeled instructions, is low in toxicity to fish, aquatic invertebrates, birds, honeybees and wildlife. It will not pose unreasonable risks or adverse effects to the environment when glyphosate is mixed and applied in the correct manner and correct concentrations for the context it is being utilized in.

It is important to realize that glyphosate is a broad-spectrum herbicide. This means it kills a wide variety of plants. Here lies an area of negative environmental impact of glyphosate if not used by knowledgeable applicators. If used excessively, fish and wildlife CAN be harmed indirectly through eradicating high levels of vegetation altering their habitat.

This is why it is important to use applicators who are licensed and educated, like those who work for Coopers Poison Ivy Service. Licensed applicators have been educated on the safest manner to apply an herbicide or pesticide, for themselves and the environment. Further, they must continue their education on the latest scientific findings and application methods… or lose their license.

Source List-
1. Environmental Protection Agency- https://www3.epa.gov/pesticides/chem_search/
reg_actions/reregistration/fs_PC-417300_1-Sep-93.pdf
2. Penn State Extension- https://extension.psu.edu/glyphosate-roundup-understanding-risks- to-human-health#:~:text=Glyphosate%20has%20lower%20acute%20toxicity,90% %20of%20all%20herbicides1
3. UMass Amherst- https://ag.umass.edu/turf/management-updates-apr-6-2020
4. Weed Science Society of America- https://wssa.net/2019/08/wssa-position-on-glyphosate/

Our applicators have knowledge and experience with working around valued garden plants and vegetation. If you desire our services and have plants you value in the area needing treatment, notify our eradicators and steps can be taken to protect wanted or valuable vegetation.

However, if poison ivy, or other unwanted vegetation to be treated, has grown into valued vegetation, we will try to minimize damage to wanted vegetation, as much as possible. But, it may still occur and may possibly lead to its death depending on the extent the unwanted vegetation has invaded. You may need to ask yourself if you would rather keep the wanted vegetation with the live unwanted vegetation in it, or take the risk of losing the valued vegetation in order to achieve full eradication of poison ivy or unwanted vegetation on your property.

We do try to do all we can to protect vegetation valued by our customers.

Most herbicides, containing glyphosate, that are sold for consumer use contain additives which, depending on the product, may…

• Increase the leaves ability to adsorb the product
• “Burn” or otherwise cause the plant to show signs of dying quicker • Control other plants for which glyphosate alone is not as effective

Buried somewhere in the product label there is a restriction on use — “This product is toxic to aquatic invertebrates. Do not apply directly to water”. The use restrictions, in areas with aquatic invertebrates, is due to the additives and not due to glyphosate itself.

We have products specially formulated for use in aquatic & terrestrial use that are approved by the EPA for use in wetlands and around running water. Though our eradicators seek to notice if they are around wetlands or riparian environments, sometimes this is not apparent. If the area requiring treatment is near either of these two environments, make sure to let us know so we can be sure to use the product best formulated for the environment it will be utilized in.

It is also important to realize that glyphosate is a broad-spectrum herbicide. This means it kills a wide variety of plants. Here lies an area of negative environmental impact of glyphosate if it is not used by knowledgeable applicators. If used excessively, fish and wildlife can be harmed indirectly through eradicating high levels of vegetation, altering their habitat.

Our eradicators have been educated by the MDAR on best practices around various environments when applying herbicides. When applied correctly, wetland areas will not reach toxic concentrations to wetland environments and biota.

Source List:
1. Environmental Protection Agency- https://www3.epa.gov/pesticides/chem_search/
reg_actions/reregistration/fs_PC-417300_1-Sep-93.pdf
2. Minnesota Department of Agriculture- https://www.mda.state.mn.us/glyphosate-herbicide
3. Science Direct- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0043135420311088
4. United States Forest Service (USFS)- https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/ stelprdb5386111.pdf

YES! We are also knowledgable on how to eradicate Japanese knotweed, bittersweet, autumn olive as well as other invasive vegetation.

YES! We guarantee in writing that if you find any live poison ivy or other invasive vegetation (such as Japanese knotweed, bittersweet, etc) contracted with us to treat, in the areas we treated, for the rest of the year or the following year, we will return and re-treat the area at no additional cost to our customers.

We will return as many times as necessary, within the guarantee period, to fulfill our promise of a poison ivy free area in the areas we treat! Many of our customers enjoy a poison ivy free area for a lot longer than 2 years.

Occasionally, there are special circumstances that prevent us from being able to guarantee eradication in two treatments. If the area needing treatment was previously treated with an herbicide from a store usually a third treatment is required to guarantee eradication. Herbicides from a store are not strong enough to kill the root though the leaves may die. In addition, areas disturbed within a few months of treatment will also require a third treatment. Examples of activities that disturb poison ivy are stump grinding, digging, weeding, weed whacking, mowing poison ivy, etc. Since broken roots can take up to a year to regrow, a third treatment is usually recommended, the following year, to eradicate any roots, previously disturbed, that can regrow.

We get very different responses from our clients when they find out the cost of our services. Some people feel it is very economical while others feel it is costly. We always try to figure out how to best meet our customers needs within their budget.

We do feel you get what you pay for so we do pay our applicators well. Once we find a worker with good character, that is willing to pay the cost (in time and money) to study the thick manual to pass the challenging Massachusetts Pesticide Applicator (Core) License exam (with a 75% or higher); wade through poison ivy (sometimes taller then themselves), mosquitos, ticks, thorny vegetation (such as multiflora roses and berry bushes), bees and sometimes rough terrain in hot and humid weather; as well as continue their education process through MDAR to keep their applicators license in the state of Massachusetts… Yes, we do have to pay our applicators well to get them and keep them.

Add on the additional cost for the herbicide, insurance (Yes! we are insured), gas for traveling to our clients and the various equipment needed and its upkeep… We can understand why some people would consider it costly.
However, again, we do feel you get what you pay for. We guarantee a quality job while trying to do right by our applicators, clients, as well as the environment.

Source List-
1. Mass.gov- https://www.mass.gov/doc/pesticide-examination-and-license-information-
bulletin/download

Glyphosate has a unique characteristic among herbicides. It binds to soil minerals. So much so that if there is too much dust on plant leaves, treating it may not be successful because the herbicide gets “handcuffed” to the dust and won’t be adsorbed into the leaves. Though this is rare, rest assured, Coopers Poison Ivy Service guarantees eradication for the price quoted no matter how many times we have to treat to get the job done. In other words, this does not impact the price or guarantee. But once glyphosate is in the soil it does not migrate horizontally or leach down into the ground water your well taps into. It can’t be absorbed by roots of plants and damage them.

The glyphosate binds to the soil minerals unavailable to plant roots and immediately begins to break down into simpler compounds that eventually degrade into carbon dioxide and water. Depending on a variety of conditions including type of soil, microbial activity, temperature etc. it’s average half-life in the soil is 30-50 days.
Due to glyphosate’s low mobility in soil and its low toxicity to humans you can rest assured your well water is safe. (Please read the question above, “Is Glyphosate Safe For Humans? Why Good Science Matters.”, if you have not already)

Source List-
1. Environmental Protection Agency- https://www3.epa.gov/pesticides/chem_search/
reg_actions/reregistration/fs_PC-417300_1-Sep-93.pdf
2. National Pesticide Information Center- http://npic.orst.edu/factsheets/glyphogen.html#symptoms
3. Minnesota Department of Agriculture- https://www.mda.state.mn.us/glyphosate-herbicide

Though glyphosate has a very low toxicity to children and pets, for good practice, we do recommend that pets and humans stay out of the treated area until our product has dried on the leaves which is approximately 30 minutes after applied. We ask customers to keep themselves, pets and their children out of the areas being treated while treatment is occuring and until 30 minutes after the applicator leaves the property.

As far as dogs or cats being exposed to it after the 30 minute period, unless they eat the plants treated specifically, there is virtually no way for them to ingest or be exposed to the herbicide as it binds to the leaf. If a pet does ingest our product by consuming treated vegetation, they might experience a little gastrointestinal upset but effects last only for a few days and there are no long term effects.

It may bode that there is more concern about pets running through untreated poison ivy subsequently giving the rash to their owner.

 We have, on occasion, used triclopyr. Though it is faster acting than glyphosate for killing poison ivy, we find it has a little more of an environmental impact. Studies show it also poses a little more harm to applicators. We use it rarely and only for special occasions and only where glyphosate is not an option. Unlike glyphosate, it is somewhat selective and will not harm some grasses and conifers. However, it does migrate and leach in soils.

The truth is, we have not found an organic herbicide that works well enough to allow us to guarantee our work. Scientific sources say, “Glyphosate has lower acute toxicity to humans than 94% of all herbicides and many common household chemicals, including vinegar and table salt. Glyphosate also has lower chronic toxicity to humans than 90% of all herbicides” (Source 3-Penn State Extensions).

Organics also tend to cost more (to a lot more) per application and can require a much higher volume. The increase in volume can negatively effect their environmental friendliness. Some organics that have been tested have shown greater negative environmental impact, when used as an herbicide, in comparison to glyphosate. Vinegar is one example.

We kindly suggest that people be careful of sources that make scientific claims, without solid scientific backing, when researching claims such as those made about vinegar and salt solutions being better for the environment than glyphosate. These claims are based on pseudoscience. At the end of this answer are quality scientific sources you can read for yourself that suppor what we are suggesting.

Vinegar, aka acetic acid, is an acid that is very corrosive and does not have the capabilities of binding to soil minerals that glyphosate has. It has a very low Ph which can, if used incorrectly, contaminate soil and natural water bodies near by. Ph and salt levels are markers of water and soil quality. Vinegar can be used as a contact herbicide that will burn the leaves of plants targeted, as well as not targeted, in its application. On plants with mature or established root systems, they will send leaf shoots back up in a few weeks. To kill them, using vinegar, requires several applications with potentially great cost to the environment as it is more toxic than glyphosate (Source- 2).

Vinegar can also be used as a pesticide to kill insects due to its antimicrobial properties from its acidity. This poses great risk to beneficial insects such as earthworms, bees and other beneficial insects and microbes when vinegar is used as an herbicide. Vinegar can cause soil acidification and leach down in the soil potentially contaminating natural water sources near by. “While baking soda, vinegar, lemon juice, and vegetable oils are far less harmful than bleaches, scouring powders and detergents, they can still be toxic to aquatic life” (Source 1).

The use of vinegar as an herbicide or pesticide has also proven to cause injury to applicators because… vinegar is an acid. Some issues reported were contact burns, eye irritation and chronic bronchitis to name a few (Source 4).

When solid science suggests an organic product that allows us to guarantee eradication, has a similar or less of an environmental impact as glyphosate as well as has low toxicity to our applicators, we’ll be happy to offer it as an option.

Source List:
1. California State Division of Boating and Waterways- https://dbw.parks.ca.gov/?
page_id=29184#:~:text=*While baking soda, vinegar,amount discharged into the water
2. Ohio State University Extension- https://fairfield.osu.edu/news/vinegar-it-“safer”-herbicide)
3. Penn State Extension- https://extension.psu.edu/glyphosate-roundup-understanding-risks- to-human-health#:~:text=Glyphosate has lower acute toxicity,90% of all herbicides1
4. University of Maryland Extension- https://extension.umd.edu/resource/vinegar-alternative- glyphosate
5. EPA- https://www.epa.gov/national-aquatic-resource-surveys/indicators- conductivity#:~:text=