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Virginia Creeper
Many people mistakenly think the virginia creeper - Parthenocissus quinquefolia - is poison ivy. At a young stage the virginia creeper can have three green glossy leaves. However, this is not poison ivy.
An easy way to tell is to count leaves. Poison ivy almost always has three leaves. The central leaf sticks out far more than the two side leaves. The sides of the leaves are generally smooth. In comparison, the virginia creeper makes five leaves that come out from a central point. They do make three leaves as the plant is on its way to that five leaf stage. More importantly, the leaves of the virginia creeper have little serrations, or knife edge ridges, running along the side of the leaf. You can see those serrations in these photos.
Note that just because it's "only" virginia creeper, don't think you're completely safe. Some people do have a reaction to virginia creeper, even though the oils in it are different form the oils in poison ivy.
These virginia creeper photos were taken in my back yard in mid-November, while they were going through their autumn foliage.
Plant Photos from Sutton Massachusetts
Photos in Sutton Massachusetts
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