Picking okra is a hot, itchy business, and never any fun. It is only grown in really hot areas like the deep South, the Southwest like Tucson or Las Cruces, where I was raised, and the pods make their appearance in mid-summer when the thick layers of clothing are highly unwelcome.
The stocks can reach as tall as six feet, and the entire plant is covered with itchy fuzziness. If you aspire to grow and pick your own okra, you will undoubtedly be overcome with the itch. Yesterday was not one of them! In high summer heat everything in my garden seems to have some sort of defense. Tomatoes, beans, squash, melons, cucumbers and okra especially okra! I also grow some things with sap that can irritate. I have figs whose milky sap can cause itching and then there is the parsnips that can cause a chemical burn if you rub up against the leaves and stems.
Yesterday I got into all of the above with no gloves or long sleeves to protect myself. It was like an instant poison ivy rash. I was itching so enthusiastically I was sure I was going to break the skin on my arms! I believe the main culprit was the okra spines I got into while reaching across the plants to harvest some pods but, I also carried in an arm full of figs. Regardless of the cause: I needed a cure, and fast! The itching was completely uncontrolled with the cream so my mind started racing looking for an alternative to what I had already tried.
I was desperate at this point and I was ready to try anything. This was sooooo bad! The itching was insane! I have used oatmeal in baths before for my kids, but what I was dealing with was not going to be relieved by my soaking in a tub with just a little bit of oatmeal.
I put the oatmeal in a small cup and added enough water to make a paste. I rubbed it all over my poor bright red, itchy arms and hands.
It was a messy process but:. I left it on long enough for it to start drying and then rubbed off the big chunks of oatmeal over the kitchen sink. What I was left with was a thin powdery coating of the oatmeal paste my older boy noted that my skin looked like a zombie. I left this coating on my arms for about an hour and then rinsed it off. I had complete and total itch relief. Now I have a new old fashioned cure for when I walk into another plant that my skin decides to violently dislike!
Lastly, over the years: this has become a bigger problem for me. If you are getting crazy itching on your forearms every time you get dry skin or after you are out in the sun for a while: you may have something called Brachioradial pruritus. Ice helps. I keep a dish sponge, cut in half, soaked with water, in zip lock bags, in my freezer or use a gel freezer pack.
I keep several frozen to help because the itching was becoming a problem several times a week. I also only moisturize with either an oatmeal baby lotion. Since the disorder above is also light sensitive it finally makes sense why my bare arms were crazy itchy after being out in the sun gardening.
I no longer use any soaps or detergents on my lower arms and I have gotten a little bit of control over what I have which actually IS what I linked to above.
Since pinched nerves can cause this: I also believe my chiropractor helps when he adjusts my neck. Try the above suggestions, and if this is becoming frequent for you: see a doctor. It might be something else, it might be serious or you might have what I have and these suggestions will save you hours of misery.
Good luck! Let me know how this works for you! I used to be a veterinary technician, and sometimes repeat contact with an exotic animal would give you an allergy to it, over years of exposure. Perhaps this is the same thing. I am glad you found the cure! That fig shot made me so hungry. I am wondering about that possibility too! But, as many of my attempts to change have ended: I got some okra spines in my arms again today!
I tell you what, old habits are hard to break. I may hang them by the back door to visually cue myself! Thanks for coming by! I appreciate the visit. I hate gardening with gloves on more than I hate the scratches, pokes and itches that come from gardening. There is nothing like the textures of soil and plants! I will remember your remedy for next time — since there is always a next time.
I totally agree! Thanks for coming by, I appreciate the visit! My hands rinse right off. It is why this is a bad habit for me.
There are certain plants that remind me to go put them on though! Thanks for coming by and commenting! I always mean to wear gloves but somehow it never happens. Luckily about the worst thing that has happened so far is very dirty hands and nails! Ideas To Revitalize a Garden Club. Using Pine Needles in Your Garden. Cooking Okra. Freezing Okra. Severe Itching Caused by Okra Plants? By Guest Post. August 30, 0 found this helpful.
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