I’m far from a subject matter expert but I thought I would share a few methods that have been successful for me, in hope that it can help shorten your learning curve on dealing with invasives if you’re just getting started. I have tried many methods and herbicides over the years but I have narrowed my approach now to (3) main methods and utilize herbicides that contains over 40% Glyphosate. I have not tried Garlon 4 but I have heard that success rates can be even higher than Glyphosate, for the price and availability, Glyphosate works well for me.
I have had my best success, this time of the year when plants are storing energy for dormancy- the herbicide take up seems to work better in late fall. I focus on Buckthorn and Honeysuckle; Buckthorn receives the priority if I’m short on time because it has no nutritional value and becomes a diuretic if browsed by deer. Buckthorn also is supposedly a winter host plant for soybean aphids- although you see it in every fence row in farm country.
I’m doing larger scale projects so I invested in good equipment- any sprayer, squirt bottle of axe/machete can achieve the same results. If you have trouble identifying invasives, start by looking in your area for the last thing that’s has foliage after all the leaves are gone and the first thing that has foliage in the spring.



Method #1 Foliar Spraying
If I have immature buckthorn/honeysuckle with shoot sizes, pencil diameter to a quarter size- I Foliar spray directly on the leaves with a concentration mix of about 3oz. of herbicide to 1 gallon of water. I use a backpack sprayer for this application.

In this picture you can see last years dead honeysuckle that was foliar sprayed and new shoots that need spraying and attention now.

Method #2 Cut Stump
For everything roughly, a quarter diameter and larger, I’ll cut off completely close to ground level and spray with 100% herbicide. Spraying immediately after the cut seems to be the key- I have read you should do it within an hour of cutting.



Method #3 Hack & Squirt
Once you’re over a quarter diameter in size and beyond you can be into 16’ to 20’ trees especially with buckthorn, I worry about herbicide drift when I’m spraying that high and dropping brush with cut stump techniques on the understory covers plants that need spraying and is a hassle. I make two incisions about 1/3 to ½ way in and squirt with 100% herbicide.


I usually wait at least two full growing seasons and return with my clearing saw if plan to replant that area with more desirable plants.
Good Luck

Goats and sheep are the answer.

The goat in Jurassic Park would probably last longer than in my woods

Excellent comeback, eagleye.

The Jurassic Park I know eat crepes and takes selfies.

Cut stump treatment: 50:50 mix of 2,4-D and oil (Nebraska Herbicide Guide) - paint or spray the stump (cambium). Honeysuckle is extremely susceptible to 2,4-D on the foliage when actively growing in the spring/early summer, so much so, that it was eliminated from the NRD tree planting list over 20 years ago due to cropland drift. Trimec (non registered herbicide) or Crossbow (registered) herbicide are very effective against your buckhorn/honeysuckle intrusions but are non-discriminative to most broadleaf species. 2,4-D and Trimec are easily available at your local farm store. Crossbow will be available at a herbicide outlet with a Cert Pesticide License _Private License is easier to get than a Commercial - sometimes on line with an at home computer self taught process. ................. my take. ................... the mike

P.S. Glyphosate is only a fair woody control herbicide. The others mentioned above are way better to kill the plants the first time through if you follow the directions. Your saw and a 1.5-2 gal. hand pump sprayer are excellent tools to handle brush problems where you can cut/and spray or just spray as you go. And use a surfactant (dish soap is the cheapest) with the above herbicides to cover leaf foliage thoroughly............ again my experience....... the mike

MIke,
Very interesting- how much dish soap would you add to 1 gallon of herbicide- I'll try it today

normally recommended at a table spoon per gallon of dish soap to glyphosate solution

we went with the 10 minute rule

I have mostly used the Gel RTU because it is a small jug to carry and I am small time in my brush removal I cut then coat the stump.

I also was always dragging the brush away to a pile so I wasn't concerned with the issue of smothering other plants

I'm going to add some Dawn this morning- heavy frost last night- should I wait for the sun to dry things out or doesn't matter?

if your spraying the cut ends I don't think the dew/frost will matter much , it is about the absorption though the fresh cut that kills

on that bigger stuff if you can ring the bark 1/2 inch deep all the way around and spray it that might work well also

trees live and die on the outside layer of new wood under the bark

this is why emerald ash borer kills a mature tree never going more than an 1/8 inch into the wood

when you see an ash with one side having a few leaves and you take an ax and start barking around the trunk you fine one narrow path of live under the bark that the borer didn't get too yet , that is the perfect time to take those down as they still have good holding wood on the stump and don't run the risk of dropping too many limbs on you while sawing
if you wait till they start dropping big limbs in the wind , you don't want to be under them while sawing widow makers are no fun.

Watching.

Moosetrot

Soap is an Ionic surfactant and will reduce the effectiveness of glyphosate which is why only non-ionic surfactants are recommended. I would not use it with Roundup. For the typical petroleum based CONTACT herbicides, adding most surfactants that help reduce the surface tension (beads) of water droplets, AND mix with oils are better than the herbicide alone. "Thorough Coverage" of the actively growing leaf matter is the Bible for those petroleum based products. CCO (concentrated crop oil) is a product recommended by some manufacturers, but usually a little soap will do just as good. And a teaspoon per gallon (added as the very last component) is ok. Make sure its added after everything (including the H2O) otherwise you fight a lot of suds. ................................ the mike

I have been painting Crossbow undiluted on the larger Buckthorn stumps after I've cut them off. It has been 100% effective. For the new emerging plants I use diluted Crossbow and just spray the foliage. That takes care of them very well.

I also have a prickly ash problem in addition to the Buckthorn. Prickly Ash is easier to kill by skinning a sliver of bark off and painting it with Crossbow. You can kill the smaller Buckthorn plants by this method too, but the bigger trees you need to paint the stumps.

I've been searching for the larger trees that drop the black berries and kill them first. These are the ones responsible for the new spreading, emerging plants.

I've been eradicating a lot of buckthorn lately. This time of year buckthorn sticks out almost as if it is neon green.

don't the birds eat the buckthorn berry's ? seem like the partridge love them , always shoot a few birds by them

I put. bottle of $1.25 store food coloring in tank so I can easily tell where I've already treated.

Either they don't eat them in my woods or we don't have enough grouse around.

That's a good idea.

Tonight I encountered a couple old buckthorn trees so big I used a powersaw to cut them down, then treated the stump with garlon.

It's so easy to spot this time of year that I deal w/ a lot of it after dark w/ a headlamp.

Birds eat the berrys Dahlgren, but it is a laxative for them.

Then they come looking for freshly washed cars

I think birds are the biggest spreaders of buckthorn, maybe honeysuckle too

Get a hold of Larry Meyer District 10s director. This Is right up his alley.

I've tried a lot of different applicators for cut stump treatment herbicide & this 1 works the best. Unfortunately the cap broke & I can't figure out where to buy these containers

dish soap bottle , with the push pull top , have you tried that ?

that looks like a sports bottle hockey type https://www.purehockey.com/product/...eX4u-o_k_bc6XROvn5QtqjjQrjhoCYb0QAvD_BwE

or on amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Sports-Squee...mp;ref=&adgrpid=65358199127&th=1

This ^, I think. Thanks! The flat bottom is key, so it doesn't tip over.

This is our favorite at work for applying herbicides on stumps:

https://gemplers.com/products/solo-one-hand-sprayer-1l

I won't rule out sprayers, but I've had too much trouble w/ them plugging up, creating a mess, trying to get them to always spray consistently & as desired, the tip falling off, etc (& I have tried several different hand sprayers, though I haven't tried the Solo).

I frequently used a tin can and a stick with a piece of sponge on the end. Also, I put a dab of cheapo food color from the $1.25 store in it so I could tell where I had already treated.

Use an old syrup container with the pop-up spout (not a flip lid). Remove the label and mark it Herbicide/Danger. Been using Tordon in them for years here. .......................................... the mike

I use a Mayo jar with a cover and paint the stump with with a 1" brush. I don't mind bending over (I need the exercise).

I also prefer cut stump method

It surely provides a workout. In fact I have to be careful not to overdo it or I get sore shoulders.

I think people are going to start noticing that buckthorn gets in their way enough to be able to have a decent chance of deflecting a bullet if shooting at a deer (or actually disallowing a shot in some situations).

Update: I've been wondering what to use on honeysuckle (the honeysuckle that I can't pull out, anyway). This week I had a Forester at my property and he suggested using Milestone via basil bark method.

Glyphosate works fine for honey suckle. In fact honeysuckle is very sensitive to it.
I would cut and then treat the stump.
I use a foaming agent mixed with a dye in a special applicator. The foam keeps the stuff in place, you can see the dye from a distance so you know what you hit and didn't hit.
You use less herbicide with the foam and dye and it stays in place much better than a herbicide that is more of a liquid like water.

4 reasons to use the dye and foaming agent.

here is a picture showing the dye on a burdock. The tall 3 pedaled plant to the upper right is a jack in the pulpit.
If you just sprayed the burdock you'd also kill all the other stuff around it opening up a bare spot that would be easy for more invasive stuff to get a foothold in.
Since I took this I have gone to just cutting burdock at ground level and putting a dab of the foam and herbicide on the stump works just as well and uses less herbicide.

Dirty D, what do you use for the foaming agent?

I buy it from a place called GreenShoots.
I mix about an oz of foaming agent to 30oz of mixed herbicide.
It lasts a long time.

here is a link.
I usually buy 64oz at a time, lasts me about 2 years.

https://www.greenshootsonline.com/collections/blue-foaming-agent/products/blue-foaming-agent-8oz

Thanks DD, I use a lot of roundup on honeysuckle, buck thorn and beech. This will definitely help with the "bookkeeping".

They do eat them, but when I met with our local bioligists for an invasive removal grant, they told me something interesting. Due to a heavy-duty laxative in the berries, a bird will excrete the seed in about 8 minutes. So, they eat, fly a little ways from the tree, and "bombs away". Another tree is possibly seeded.

Also, if you use the round-up method of honeysuckle removal, need to do it in the fall. The plant is drawing all the nutrients it can into it's roots at that time. Cut, spray round up on the stump, and let it be. I've been using a choker chain and a tractor to remove bush in the spring/summer, roots, and all. They cannot re-seed from that.

Just my thoughts.

I try to pull when I can or grind the stump. Some you can't do this way, so spray away.

Right now is the perfect time of year to pull honeysuckle in my opinion

They can eat the smaller plants, but not the larger berry bearing ones.

If you scrape the bark off a small section of the larger plants and using a brush, paint it with an undiluted herbicide like Crossbow. That will kill the plant. Or you can cut the plant down and paint the stump with the same thing.

If you want to try a non herbicide method for 2" plus buckthorn(I grub out smaller with a mattock) just cut off a few inches above ground and zip tie or wire a square of Hv BLACK poly over stump. Third year I have done it and it have killed and prevented sprouting on all. Except one that came off for some reason. Developed by an Arbor specialist I read online. I don't like to use chems if I can help it.

That sounds like a pretty smart idea. I'll have to try it. I'd rather not use chemicals either. Thanks.

Great idea Drake, I'll give that a try myself. Thanks!

Not my idea. Just passing on info that has been working from an expert researching buckthorn control. As I yearly patrol my land now for invading buckthorn it has not been hard to recover poly/zip ties after a couple of seasons having killed what I call mother trees(larger buckthorn that are producing seed). Now that I have got them killed I am doing a 6 year rotation of 20 aceres a year of my 120. I patrol late fall as buckthorn is one of the last to drop it's leaves and is pretty easy to spot at a good distance, still bright green. Saplings are about man high and not hard to just pull out(usually very shallow roots in soft soil) or with a grub or two with a small mattocks. Sadly another yearly chore to control but the alternative is loosing the understory and stand regeneration.

I have some Tartan honey suckle but it is not proving invasive.

Very well stated. 100% correct. Unfortunately most people around here do nothing about it.

I've been trying to focus on the ones w/ berries. Those berries that aren't yet purple hopefully won't become viable if I can kill the buckthorn trees asap.

It's getting to be that time of year when buckthorn is easier to spot

yes

I just loaded up a Gatorade Squirt Bottle with Garlon 4.

Garlon 4 was mentioned by OP. It and the other triclopyr herbicides are extremely effective against woody brush and trees. Another option it gives you is basal bark treatment. Instead of water, use diesel fuel with 4 oz/gallon. For trees up to about 8 in, wet the bottom 18 in. Late summer and fall is best. I know diesel is expensive, but think of how much it would take to spray all leaves of a tree. I have been using triclopyr herbicides to clear an infestation of trifoliate orange on my farms

That's what I use too.

thanks going to try the diesel

The problem with goats is that they eat off the smaller plants OK, but they come back the following year. I spray all the emerging plants with diluted Crossbow.
The larger plants I cut off and paint the stumps with undiluted Crossbow.

Sheep aren't the answer for buckthorn or honeysuckle.

Repeated years of grazing the same buckthorn might kill it

I'd like to deal w/ buckthorn in the winter but I don't think I trust the effectiveness of my Garlon 4 (cut stump treatment) below 28°

Cut it all chest height and in the summer it will be am easy process to remove 6" and treat.

I'd rather only cut it once.

Is anyone battling it this winter? I usually take the winter off. I don't think Garlon 4 works below 28°.

I watched an episode of Ky Afield a couple weeks ago and the KDFWR are using helicopters to spray for bush honeysuckle on wildlife management areas. They are spraying late fall after the trees and other weeds and stuff go dormant but the honeysuckle still has green leaves. They said it is working really well. I believe they said they are even offering services for private land owners

Interesting. I had never heard of a copter being used. We must get creative though to mitigate invasives.

Saw it also. Interesting show. Guess the "project" to bring it in to improve habitat backfired. Eastern Ky is facing same thing with (not sure what it actually is ) but people call it Russian thistle. It was supposed to fill in around strip mines.

Any exposed soil can greatly exaccerbate the potential for problems

Hogs. Hogs will eat the area clean. Keep them grazing over the buckthorn infested area.

I was cutting buckthorn off at ground level and painting it with undiluted Crossroad earlier. But, with the colder temps and all the rain we've had, I don't know how effective it will be. I hate to keep hitting it if it's not going to kill it.

I agree with you. I tend to feel that if the 1st treatment doesn't kill it, then the person trying to eradicate it is doing something wrong. I think buckthorn is easier to kill than honeysuckle, but I use Garlon 4 for buckthorn & try to pull the honeysuckle. I'm interested in a fool proof way to kill honeysuckle, but all I've been able find so far is Tordon. I wuit using Tordon b/c it's too potent in my opinion.

I'd be interested to know the late winter/dormant effectiveness on killing it also. I think the determining factor would be; does honeysuckle have a suckering or non-suckering root system? In the late fall, the herbicide intake is high as the plant is storing root nutrients for the dormant season, I've been successful eradicating it then. If you stump cut it in the winter and spray and/or hack & squirt my concern would be that it comes back with vengeance but I have nothing to base that off of. I bought a new 40 recently and found a mature stand in two locations, I'd love to treat now but I also don't want to create a second effect and have it spread through the root system.

Following

When is the best time to cut and spray?

Around end of October… invasives tend to be the last and first things to green up- they really stand out.

Garlon 4, the oil based version, is very effective at low temperatures during the dormant season. I have dug ash stumps that were cut several weeks previously, out of snow banks, sprayed the outer layer with Garlon 4 (a mix of 25% Garlon, 75% bark oil and a splash of dye) and had zero sprouts the following summer. Temperature when I sprayed was probably 10-20 degrees F. I haven’t followed how effective it is on buckthorn but we use it for buckthorn and honeysuckle and haven’t seen resprouts.

Clark- thanks for the feedback. I found this excerpt authored by, Erika Segerson-Mueller, DNR Invasive Plant Program Specialist, Oshkosh titled: Winter Work: Invasive Honeysuckle Treatment I'm going to try it- as Clark mentioned, as long as it's treated upon cutting- resprouting should be minimal.


"Winter is a great time to treat invasive honeysuckle shrubs on your property since most other plants have gone dormant for the season. Winter herbicide applications are highly successful on freshly cut stumps, provided snow does not cover the cut surface. Basal bark applications may also be used on snow-free surfaces.

Stump cutting should be followed by herbicide treatments, as vigorous resprouting may occur from shrubs cut in winter but not treated with herbicide. Learn more about invasive honeysuckles and how to manage them on the Bush honeysuckles fact sheet from Renz Weed Science at the University of Wisconsin-Extension"

I was wondering about cutting the larger plants off in the winter if it's effective to kill the plant if you paint the stump with undiluted herbicide like Crossbow or Crossroads? I'd like to get back in the woods and start killing the larger plants off with this warmer weather. But, will painting the stump be a waste of time and herbicide?

They seem to claim you should treat the root collar too, not just paint the surface.

In my woods I have buckthorn and prickly ash. Prickly Ash is easy to kill. Just scrape a small piece of the bark off and paint it with an undiluted woody plant herbicide and it will die shortly. Buckthorn is a lot tougher. The wood of Buckthorn is real pretty. I knew a guy who I used to give the larger Buckthorn to. He made miniature, very decorative bird houses that were really amazing.

Buckthorn makes good walking stick canes.

Trapper7, I might try that trick w/ garlon 4 on prickly ash. I've never heard of that. Although prickly ash is easy to pull as long as it's moist ground and you don't get scratched.

Today was my first attempt at dormant spraying honeysuckle, I’ll evaluate the effectiveness during spring green up. We have near record temperatures at 50 degrees with no snow. I’m utilizing Garlon 4 Ultra with blue dyed basal oil, mixed at 30% Garlon to 70% oil. The method I chose was a modified cut stump, I left the stump 6” above ground, treating the cambium first and then the basal outer bark.


This is a fairly mature stand on a new 40 I bought- I’ve had a couple PM’s asking about how to identify it during dormancy, mature honeysuckle will have arched branches, a shaggy bark basal and a hollow pith when cut.

I expect you will be very happy with the results. Japanese honeysuckle is very susceptible for Garlon.

Buckthorn bounty:

https://www.dailyherald.com/2024022...ation-group-is-targeting-invasive-plant/

Since this time of year the sap is down in the roots. I wonder how effective cutting off the larger buckthorn plants and painting the stump with undiluted Crossbow will be?

What about using a skid-steer and post-tree puller and pulling them out by the roots? Been thinking about this lately.

we did a project by the river about 8-10 years ago pulled up all sorts of honeysuckle piled it up

the roots break off where they get little and that grows the next year

also you disturb a lot of soil and that lets other things in to seed

applying herbicide to a fresh cut seems to be the best way to kill the stump , then the roots rot away and stumps pop fairly easily the next year

it still takes some spraying to catch what you missed the next year but not as much.


pulling can make an area look great in a day , but it doesn't seem to keep

I would not pull buckthorn that way. There are better ways to kill buckthorn & the method you refer to would cause too much soil disruption.

I get that but we have acres of it to try to control and I am not sure it is even possible with it being spread.

Sorry hit the wrong button. Instead of ringing the tree drill a half inch hole to the heart and fill it full of tordon. Dead tree in a month

great idea going to try this, thanks 5123

I’m back at it again today… the M12 Milwaukee pruner is another great tool, I pull up to pencil size, prune up to an inch and use the Milwaukee hatchet above that.

how long is that battery good for. I use a hand pruner for cutting small stuff, after a couple of days the hands can get sore. I imagine that thing is heavy tho.

Thats what my cousin has been doing under the supervision of the MN DNR. He piles up plucked trees and burns them in the winter. In fact, the DNR is paying him to do so on his own property and instructed him to take all woody vegetation under 4" also.

Dirty D -. The batteries last a long time, I recharged both M12 pruner and hatchet, M18 chainsaw when I went in for lunch. The pruner is not heavy to handle and is rated for 1,000 1/2" cuts per battery charge,

I might try that. I often rely on a 20V reciprocating saw, which works so-so

This winter is probably great for treating buckthorn

This might end up working on buckthorn:

https://mitppc.umn.edu/research/research-projects/effects-puccinia-species-complex-common-buckthorn

Hook them up high and yank them out w/tractor. Hit the remaining roots w/roundup.

Prickly Ash is much easier to kill than buckthorn. Prickly Ash has long roots that produce more plants and are sometimes hard to pull. That's why I prefer to kill it with Crossbow. Garlon 4 would definitely kill Prickly Ash.

Doable I guess, as long as a person is safe & also doesn't create too much ground disturbance.

Pulling honeysuckle is ok right? It doesn't cause 12 more to sprout does it?

Pulling it can be very effective.