OT: Insidious vine identification

We moved into a home in Grovetown, GA on a large lot with lots of trees. Fortunately only a few of the more mature trees have a vine that apparently sticks its thorns into the bark and climbs up the trunk. Root structure is large clump of tuberous like globes and the vine travels an amazing distance to find a tree.

We've seen the Kudzu trees in N.C. and S.C. and this doesn't appear to be the same vine. We didn't see anything like this in California and wonder if anything can be done as home owners to control it. Presently we're digging the glob of tubers out when they are found and pulling as much of the vine out of the tree and following the runners under the ground and cutting off when we can't do anything else.

We'd like to know the name and if there are any steps for us to take to control this vine.

Reply to
nospambob
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take sample to local garden center not big box retailer. they will know all about your problem.

if its not hazardous or ugly i tend to leave things be but that is me:(

Reply to
hallerb

A photo would help as Poison Ivy can be a vine and is up north. I know, I pulled it off trees, burnt it, breathed the smoke and was sick for 6 months.

Reply to
m Ransley

Can't recall its name but it is a vicious thing to have around. There is probably herbcides that will kill it. digging up tuberous root helps, but think if a bit of root is left it will still survive.. I'd talk to Agri agent and see if they have a solution. I fought the culbrit when I lived in Florida.

Reply to
tinacci336

I'll bet a call to your local County Extension office will not only help you identify it, but will also give you the best solution to it and it is free and most important, they are not trying to push some commerical product.

Reply to
Joseph Meehan

Search for KUDZU. TB

Reply to
tbasc

First I'll cover vines that I DON'T think it is.

If the vine has rootlets which bind it to the support, and has leaves in sets of 5 - a stem coming from the vine with 5 leaflets on it - you have Virginia Creeper. I don't recall any tubers in the root structure, but I haven't pulled any big ones either.

Another one with rootlets is poison ivy, but you'd probably know after 24 hours if you'd pulled that one by hand . Remember, "leaflets three, leave it be".

A woody vine which grows in the area is called cross vine. Leaves are in sets of 2 and are oval, but a really long oval. Plant uses tendrils to hold on supports - may have rootlets too, never paid much attention. This plant has very nice blooms this time of year - trumpet shaped, yellow and red.

None of the above have thorns.

There are several "wild" roses, but I think you'd recognize them.

Now for what I think it is...

Leaves are shiny, oval to nearly round? Tendrils may also help hold vine to support?

Greenbriars can have a vine as big around as your finger or as small as a kite string, depending on the age of the plant and the species. Most have thorns (some in great profusion) in proportion to the diameter of the vine, but some do not. All (AFIK) have woody, knotty tubers in the root system which have wiry roots coming from them and most have horizontal runners just beneath the soil level which throw up new vines along the way.

FYI, the tubers used to (may still) be used to make smoking pipes.

From your post, sounds like you are doing the right things for control. I would also add that if you can't get the root out, cut it and paint the end with Roundup. This will not always give complete control, but will weaken the plant to the extent that a future application (may take more than one if the plant is particularly strong) will probably do it in. It is best to cut the vine and apply Roundup to the cut as the leaves and vine have a waxy coating which impedes absorbtion of the chemical.

If the plant is in an area that can be mowed, a couple of years of weekly mowing will usually kill it. I have used this method to control both blackberries and greenbriar. You have to get the plants cut back to something that your mower can handle first though.

HTH

Later, Mike (substitute strickland in the obvious location to reply directly)

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Reply to
Michael Strickland

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