It will grow in sun or deep shade and loves to place itself under shrubs and in the center of other plants where it's not always easy to spot. In the dry shade of my woodlands, it does not form the huge masses I've seen in sunnier spots, usually appearing as one or two stems and foliage sprouting irregularly from an exposed or partly buried horizontal stem or root. Poison ivy may occur as a trailing or climbing vine or a shrub. In my woods, it trails or climbs. The trailing vines slither along the ground, periodically erecting a smooth light brown stem sporting the notorious three leaf clusters of foliage.
New foliage is shiny and red tinged - very attractive, actually.
The leaves become duller with age. In winter, the large terminal bud makes the stems recognizable. Underground stems also exhibit hairy roots, but not as profusely as those that have started to climb. Flowers are greenish-white and inconspicuous, forming white berries relished by birds who drop the seeds all over the place. Seedlings are difficult to tell from Virginia creeper seedlings, so use caution when weeding if you have both vines.