I am trying to kill some well established Honeysuckle bushes. I cannot dig down far enough to remove the root.
What do you think about pouring straight bleach on the plants? Would that make the ground unusable for the future?
Mary
Why not just use some Round-up? You can cut the plants down and paint the cut branches with full-strength Round-up.
I heard Roundup does not work. By I will try it first. I thought bleach would be a cheap alternative.
If cheap is important, use Ortho Brush Be Gone (triclopyr). It is way cheaper than roundup, and works well on bush honeysuckle. If you can get farm chemicals, you can find it even cheaper. You might find it in bulk at a big box store like Tractor Supply, or a local co-op.
Herbicidal Controls
Foliar Spray Method: This method should be considered for large thickets of bush honeysuckle where risk to non-target species is minimal. Air temperature should be above 65°F to ensure absorption of herbicides.
Glyphosate: Apply a 2% solution of glyphosate and water plus a 0.5% non-ionic surfactant to thoroughly wet all leaves. Use a low pressure and coarse spray pattern to reduce spray drift damage to non-target species. Glyphosate is a non-selective systemic herbicide that may kill non-target partially-sprayed plants.
Triclopyr: Apply a 2% solution of triclopyr and water plus a 0.5% non-ionic surfactant to thoroughly wet all leaves. Use a low pressure and coarse spray pattern to reduce spray drift damage to non-target species. Triclopyr is a selective herbicide for broadleaf species. In areas where desirable grasses are growing under or around bush honeysuckle, triclopyr can be used without non-target damage.
Cut Stump Method: This control method should be considered when treating individual bushes or where the presence of desirable species precludes foliar application. This treatment is effective as long as the ground is not frozen.
Glyphosate: Horizontally cut bush honeysuckle stems at or near ground level. Immediately apply a 25% solution of glyphosate and water to the cut stump, covering the outer 20% of the stump.
Triclopyr: Horizontally cut bush honeysuckle stems at or near ground level. Immediately apply a 25% solution of triclopyr and water to the cut stump, covering the outer 20% of the stump.
My personal favorite, as cutting is not required and many acres of honeysuckle is way to much to cut.
Basal Bark Method: This method is effective throughout the year as long as the ground is not frozen. Apply a mixture of 25% triclopyr and
75% horticultural oil to the basal parts of the shrub to a height of 30-38 cm (12-15 in) from the ground. Thorough wetting is necessary for good control; spray until run-off is noticeable at the ground line.I use diesel oil (cheaper). I also find it is easier to avoid collateral damage with this method. One need only spray the first foot or so of the trunk(s)using a course spray, which makes it easier to avoid the other plants and trees. You can kill a whole bunch of honeysuckle in a day this way. I like to do it in the winter after the ground has thawed and before the other plants are up. At that time it is easier to walk through the woods, and the distinctive bark and growth habit of honeysuckle makes it easy to spot. Honeysuckle is also the first thing that tends to leaf out around here, making it even easier to spot.
This spring I have taken out probably 20 large honeysuckles and some other annoying weed plants like mimosa and used the "chop it off and paint the stub with concentrated Roundup" method on them. The success rate seems to be 100% which is better than I've achieved trying to dig out those nasty big root nodes in other years since if I missed any large bits new growth was not unusual. Of course that means that there will be little stubs sticking up but the area I was working in was pretty rough already I didn't worry about it too much.
Thanks for the killing methods. I have found that these bushes seem to thrive on abuse, and are very stubborn to get rid of.
replying to Vox Humana, J.Mc wrote: Roundup is proven to be horrible for people, animals, and plants. I'm not some overbearing activist or anything, but I won't use that junk.
Roundup is a waste of your time and money for bush honeysuckle. They may look dead for awhile but I guarantee in time, sometimes a couple years or more, you will see suckers coming back on those “dead” stumps. Short of drilling holes in it and filling it with the strongest glyphosate you can get your hands on then plugging the hole, it don’t work for crud on this stuff... I find it interesting all these sources stating roundup is the best thing for it. Pfft! Missouri edu being one of them... hmm Monsanto is head quarters is in St. Louis... Two words, Tordon RTU. Kills it dead first time with a simple cut stump treatment in any season! Just be careful, this stuff sticks around in the soil for a long time, but that’s what you NEED for honeysuckle, it takes time to get to all those roots and kill it dead permanently!
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