Homeowner Slammed for Refusing to Remove Poison Ivy Affecting Neighbor Kids

Commenters criticized a homeowner who refused to remove the poison ivy in their yard after their neighbors asked because it kept their young children away.

The Original Poster (OP), known as u/Acceptable-Neat8443, posted about the situation in Reddit's popular "Am I The A**hole" where it received more than 11,200 upvotes and 4,400 comments. The post can be found here.

Spotting Poison Ivy

Poison ivy, as well as its fellow Toxicodendron plants poison oak and poison sumac, have sap oil that can trigger allergic reactions.

Found in every state of the continental U.S., Toxicodendron plants thrive in hot and sunny areas and do not survive well in deserts, rainforests, or elevations higher than 5,000 feet.

Poison ivy is a climbing vine and often occurs as several glossy leaves arranged in groups of three along a stem rather than as stand-alone shrubs.

It is sometimes difficult to spot poison ivy since it can be easily mistaken for other plants. If you're not sure whether the plant in front of you is poison ivy, look for these features:

• Solid green, pointed glossy leaves that are arranged in groups of three—not to be confused with the Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia) which has five leaves.
• Leaves alternating on the stem, not opposite each other like the leaves of the box elder (Acer negundo).
• Poison ivy does not have prickles—unlike blackberry and raspberry plants.
• Damaged parts of the plant usually have black spots or black sap.
• The leaves turn yellow, orange and red in the fall.
• The flowers and fruits are cream-colored.

'AITA?'

In the post titled "AITA for refusing to get rid of poison ivy at the edge of my yard?" the homeowner said the border between their and their neighbor's home has poison ivy.

Recently, a family with young kids moved in and one of the parents asked them to remove the poison ivy because their kids were getting rashes when they played in that section of the yard.

The OP refused, saying that they have an "extreme sensitivity" and have stopped trying to control it because it always causes rashes when they attempt to.

'Grateful for It'

Instead, the OP told their neighbor they could get the poison ivy removed on their part of the yard.

"They said that even if they did that it would grow back into their yard from my side and that I could pay a company to remove it if I wouldn't do it myself," the post read. "I said that I would only agree to that if they paid for all of it. They refused and said they would be looking into local laws about nuisance plants. We're not on speaking terms anymore."

The OP said that since the plant is "their problem," they shouldn't have to pay for it.

"Am I really the a**hole here?" the post read. "They could just teach their kids to avoid poison ivy like I do. I could understand it if I had planted it intentionally...Quite frankly, I'm grateful for it because it's been keeping their loud kids away from my yard who were really annoying me whenever I was out in the garden."

Redditor Reactions

More than 4,400 users commented on the post, many criticizing the OP for not compromising on the problem.

"Offering to split the cost strikes me as a very reasonable compromise," one user commented. "Digging in makes you an AH neighbor. Celebrating it as a poison child deterrent even more so. Your neighbors will figure out the laws and act accordingly, and will always hate your guts."

"If you're sensitive to it, why WOULDN'T you want to remove it?" another user commented.

"I don't understand why you keep the poison ivy that you are so sensitive to," another commented. "It's a weed and a nuisance and an allergen. You can plant other things for the little creatures, maybe even plant a hedge to keep the neighbors out that doesn't cause rashes and require moonsuits to get near."

"Oh, I see that the real reason you're letting this poisonous plant continue to grow and encroach on your neighbor's property is so that the kids will not be able to play in that section of their own yard," another user commented. "You are intentionally keeping a poisonous plant around that is harmful to both you and your neighbors so they can't access that part of their property. How completely selfish. YTA."

Newsweek reached out to u/Acceptable-Neat8443 for comment.

Other Viral Posts

In another viral Reddit post, a man was praised for telling his neighborhood about his "pervert" neighbor, and another person was applauded for getting "revenge" on their neighbor.

In one post, a woman was slammed for banning her neighbors' children from playing outside after 7 p.m.