if you're going to recommend applying an herbicide to the cut stump, you really need to specify which herbicide and at what concentration. For example, if you apply glyphosate at the concentration at which it is commonly available as a foliar spray, it will be too dilute to work as a cut stump treatment. For this, you need 20 to 25% glyphosate to be effective.
Very good point! Cut stump treatment typically requires a more concentrated herbicide solution than foliar spray. If you are buying pre-mixed herbicides from your local hardware store they will likely be formulated for foliar spray NOT cut-stump. Always read and follow the label- not only does it provide important information for effective use and safety but it is the law.
Another way to use the cut branches of bush honeysuckle is to do a wraparound to deter deer from eating or rubbing great native trees like oak and pawpaw. Thx for addressing this problem.
Sawzall with a pruning blade works great. Can use it on big stuff and you don't have to worry about the blade going into the dirt (which you do have to worry about with a chainsaw).
I use a 12” bar Echo chainsaw which is light, easy to carry, and much faster than a saws all. Get a person to apply chemical and you can be pretty efficient at honeysuckle removal.
Addendum to my previous comment: girdling requires that you cut around the stump, through the bark and the phloem, (the first layer of living vascular tissue which carries nutrients from the leaves down to the roots) but ideally not the xylem (the second area of living vascular tissue which carries water and nutrients from the roots up to the leaves). The xylem can be a few years of annual growth- the wood growth rings. If the xylem is left intact, the roots will be forced to feed the foliage, and get nothing in return. Btw, the girdle must be wider than a saw kerf, maybe an inch or more, to prevent the tree or bush from healing itself. Girdling is effective on many trees and large shrubs, including those which resprout when cut down.
I think this is one of the really well done videos of this on RU-vid. I appreciate the comment on the ash tree decline and honeysuckle invasion correlating with each other. That is a sad observation I have noticed. I also want to ask: I know bush honeysuckle has allopathic characteristics, but I haven’t found reliable information on the strength of that allopathy. Have you observed the effects of that in forests you have managed?
Unless you have a high threshold of pain, or a lot of extra time, the video starts at 11:33 and ends at 12:50. Brush B Gone concentrate applied immediately to the cut stem kills the plant.
Good question- I'd say it depends on where you are located since honeysuckle leaf outs at different times in different places. In general, you want to avoid bud swell to leaf out. So, for me, March would be the wrong time to try this, I'd wait until summer (and fall is even better). Not that it might not work but your efficacy would likely be higher at different times of year. On the other hand, instead of a cut-stump application, you could cut now and then do a foliar herbicide spray on the new shoots that emerge in the later summer/ fall. Just a few thoughts!
Good question- I'd say it depends on where you are located since honeysuckle leaf outs at different times in different places. In general, you want to avoid bud swell to leaf out. So, for me, March would be the wrong time to try this, I'd wait until summer (and fall is even better). Not that it might not work but your efficacy would likely be higher at different times of year. On the other hand, instead of a cut-stump application, you could cut now and then do a foliar herbicide spray on the new shoots that emerge in the later summer/ fall. Just a few thoughts!
Electric chainsaw works great for bigger bushes. Don't have to fight trying to get gas chainsaws started. The constant hand sawing will catch up with you physically over time.....Small pick mattox will help with smaller bushes. Hit the base of bush and in soil around it, this will help loosen the roots. Also tool can be jabbed under roots and pulled, gives better grip than plant stem that may break.
The electric chainsaw is also nice because it only runs when cutting and you don’t need ear protection. The gas chainsaw runs a lot more and you need ear protection but it cuts much faster than the electric saw. I have so much honeysuckle that the gas saw is what I use just because it’s faster. It also weighs less than my electric saw.
