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20 years ago
we bought some country land with a major blackberry infestation. and non-poisonous means , that you know of? "If I can not dance, I want no part in your revolution." Emma Goldman
You could always charge people to pick their own while they last when the berries come into season. You make a few bucks on every bucket and the bushes get picked clean. Doesn't get any more non-poisonous than that, provided you have the time and inclination to get into a small neighborhood berry-selling business.
Otherwise, you could just pull 'em up with a few feet of maybe 1/2" steel cable (sold at hardware stores) hitched to a back car/pickup/SUV bumper (that worked for getting rid of a good half-dozen really overgrown and half-dead evergreen bushes in front of our house when we moved in), or get yourself a pruning saw and hack 'em off at ground level. That's pretty non-poisonous, too.
AJS
If you are not willing to use an herbacide, I suggest you find some recipes for blackberries.
I did my best to dig out a small patch for several years without success.
On of those heavy duty brush mowers. Keep mowing as they grow. Plants cannot live forever without tops and leaves.
You got 20 plants or 20 acres of them? Tough to deal with. If it is a workable size, I'd cut the plants down to the ground, then spray with RoundUp when they sprout about three leaves. Works on asparagus fern, which, in Florida, is a very tough, invasive weed. RU is expensive, so using it on an entire plant is do-able but costs.
It will probably take 2-3 years to get those that come from seed already dropped. Can it be mowed after you get the mature ones out?
In article , snipped-for-privacy@humboldt1.com says... :) we bought some country land with a major blackberry infestation. :) and non-poisonous means , that you know of? :) "If I can not dance, I want no part in your revolution." Emma Goldman :)
Mow..mow..then mow some more.
Cyber, I live in the Willamette Valley in Oregon, and it's a BB mecca. I too bought an infestation. I tried a million things, and hardly anything worked.
What DID work? Nineteen-year-old boys. I hired a couple of them to cut all the shoots down to the ground, and then I had them pull the cut vines to the dumpster I had rented for the occasion. You see, if you leave the cut vines within 8 inches of soil, they'll sprout again! I mowed the area once a month, and at least twice a month sprayed the inevitable sprouts with a strong (Twice what was spec'd) concentration of Roundup. During our mild rainy winter, I'd spray any time the weather looked like it was going to be dry for two hours or more. After about 18 months, I've cut back to spraying once every three months or so. I still mow, though, to keep the bird-dropped seedlings at bay.
The biggest tip? Have patience- they're a pain but they can be banished.
skg
Heres your answer. It will however take vigilance and you can't let them get started again. Short of having some kind of equipment come in and remove all the soil, you'll just have to work at it.
Get some sheep to browse them down and your problem will be solved. My sheep are better than locusts or agent orange for clearing a field. Maybe there's s shepherd in your area who could use some extra grazing land for his flock. Or a goat herd; goats are good at this, too. If not, you can pick up sheep cheaply at your local livestock auction.
If your situation is such that they may wander onto highways or neighboring croplands, string some temporary electric fence wire and hook it to a solar powered charger. You don't have to fence the whole property, just a half-acre at a time until they've cleared the section, then move the fencing.
When the blackberries are gone, put the sheep in the freezer and have months of lamb chops and roasts. Or use them for the wool. I learned to shear and my wife spins and knits; now I have a lifetime supply of hats, sweaters, socks, etc.
Paul
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