Improve Your Property — Remove Buckthorn Plants
This seemingly harmless plant is an invasive shrub called Buckthorn. It blends in with the rest of your greenery, and most property owners don’t give it a second thought. However, Buckthorn simply does not belong on your property. Read on to find out why you should remove Buckthorn from your property, and how to do so.
Why should I remove Buckthorn from my property?
Buckthorn impedes the healthy development of native plants. As buckthorn spreads, it crowds them out and robs them of the resources they need to thrive. Thus, removing the Buckthorn from your property enables the remaining plants to reach their optimal development.
Put simply, a clean forest ads to your property value — which is always a good thing.
How can I remove Buckthorn from my property?
There are various methods you can choose from to get the job done. But, the ideal time to do these methods is always either late spring or early fall.
The first method is to simply halt future seed production, which doesn’t eliminate the infestation, but does eliminate the spread. We do this by removing all female Buckthorn plants, which are easily identified by their berries. Each berry contains several seeds, and this is how the infestation spreads. Get rid of the berry-producing plants, and you get rid of the spread. You can use a root wrench to complete this task. Pro Tip: Work together with your neighbor to eliminate their female buckthorn plants as well, so you both may enjoy a higher success rate and longer-lasting results.
The second method, is to manually remove the Buckthorn and then apply herbicide containing Triclopyr to the remaining stump to prevent regrowth. You can manually remove the Buckthorn using a chainsaw, or any other reasonable method of your choosing. This is a more labor intensive route, and is most effective for more sparse buckthorn infestations where you have more room to move around freely. The removed Buckthorn will then also need to be burned to guarantee prevention of the spreading.
The third method is forestry mulching. This is the recommended method for larger, denser infestations. A forestry mower will quickly cut and shred the Buckthorn, leaving only wood chips and sticks behind. The remaining bark will then need to be sprayed with herbicide, to prevent the seeds from rooting, as we mentioned in method one. The final step in this process is restoring the native ground cover vegetation, as this will act as a natural defense against future opportunist Buckthorn seedlings.
Keeping your property free of Buckthorn is an extensive effort, one that can often require years of consistency when you opt for the DIY route. It’s also an endeavor that requires annual upkeep. The time-consuming nature of this process often causes clients to seek out a company to do this work for them. Of course, our team of professionals here at LandEx Co. is always ready to help!