How do I kill a mulberry bush/tree once and for all?

Spray it on the leaves instead...it works by takeup into the plant via the foliage.

I didn't check the label specifically for mulberry, but expect it will do the trick.

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I sympathize. Darn things seem to have more lives than a cat, don't they?

I did manage to kill one, once. I cut it off as close to the ground as I could, and poured a LOT of salt on the freshly-cut surface. I repeated the application of salt several times over the next week or so -- every time the cut edge looked wet, I poured more salt on. Tree died, and (surprisingly for a mulberry) it has *stayed* dead.

Thanks, I'll try salt.

I can't really spray the leaves with Roundup (wish I could) because the mulberry is all mixed in with my shrubs and daylilies.

Roundup doesn't work that way. It is a systemic killer that needs to be absorbed via the leaves.

You could drill a bunch of holes again and fill with a high nitrogen fertilizer or manure and cover with dirt. That will make it start to decompose. I also remember buying a commercial product that was packed in a milk carton style package that is used the same way.

Ortho brush killer is a better choice for this but if you could get some garlon from a licensed landscape guy you would certainly kill it.

You can wipe Roundup on with a sponge or rag. Wear rubber gloves.

on 6/22/2009 9:58 AM (ET) Mitch@_._ wrote the following:

Can you jack it out by the roots? Wrap and tie a 1/4" nylon rope to the base of the bush and thread the rope up though a gap between decking. Loop that end over the lifting part of a bumper jack placed over a joist and jack it up. Me, I just pull out unwanted bushes and small trees with my 4 x 4 truck.

I had one in the corner of my garden. I liked it. The Orioles loved it. It had about a 5" trunk. I clipped it a couple times with the mower and scraped some bark off. it died.

Try enjoying the mulberry. They don't seem to like that.

Really- you need to leave the foliage on and soak it with the roundup. Leave the dead stuff until it is dry and brittle.

Jim

Copper sulfate mixed with water poured at the stump and copper nails in the tree might do something over years, dig a hole for the copper so it doesnt run off. Roundup only works on leaves, if you can cover the good plants with plastic drop cloths for a few hours you can spray it, The Company would best direct you on time needed to cure but I think its maybe 20-45 minutes. Dont you like the berries?

The nitrogen works, sounds a little counterintuitive at first but I guess the high dose of nitrogen just burns the crap out of it.

Jimmie

Cover the stump with a heavy pail or coffee can. Drive a nail through it into the stump to anchor it firmly (so sprouts can't lift it off). Shovel dirt around the pail to help hold it in place and keep out the light. Keep the pail in place for about a year. The stump will sprout, but the sprouts will die from lack of light. The stump eventually runs out of stored energy and dies.

Roundup works on leaves. Cut the tree to the ground. When it develops

We used it to kill tough weeds in our lawn and landscaping that could not be dug or pulled out. Put a little roundup in a cup and brush it onto the leaves of the offending plant/weed. Too much salt can damage lawn or shrubs, especially acid lovers like azalea or rhododendron.

I have some stinkweed trees that seem immortal. . .

I would rethink that especially since you mentioned other plants are close by.

Mine still grows leaves in the front lawn 6 years after being cut down and most of the rotten stump dug out. I just mow over it as I don't want to kill my grass with herbicide.

So, if you put Roundup on just some of the leaves, will it kill the whole plant?

Because there is a big chunk of the mulberry bush that's come up around the side of my deck, and it's isolated from other plants.

Ha! Yeah, my luck with gardening, if I decided to love it it would die instantly.

I actually like the look of a mulberry, but this one is in danger of damaging my deck.