A Management Guide for Invasive Plants in Southern Forests James ...

Hand clippers are useful for cutting back climbing vines and small multi-stemmed woody plants up to 1 inch in diameter.Cut as closely to the ground as possible. For vines, remove a 4- to 5-foot section to prevent regrowth trellising tothe upper dead vine. Immediately apply an appropriate herbicide to the surface of the cut stem. When this is not anoption, you will need to cut when resprouts appear, and do so repeatedly until no more regrowth. For most invasivevines with large roots, it is nearly impossible to deplete root energy reserves with repeated cutting. The most effectivetime for cutting is late spring when root reserves are lowest following spring emergence and growth. Clippers also canhelp gain access in dense brush where it is necessary to use other methods like backpack sprays. Purchase goodquality clippers that have a bright color for easy locating and a holster for quick access. Alwayskeep cutting tools sharpened, and carry sharpening stones and files to the field. Clean andmaintain tools to prevent rust and provide safe operations.33Loppers are long-handled shears for cutting woody stems up to several inches in diameter.Sturdy long handles, handgrips, and ratchet mechanisms can increase the stem-size cuttingcapability. Cuts should be positioned as close to the ground as possible to effectively removemost stem buds. Loppers are commonly used in combination with a herbicide spray bottle fortreating the cut-stump to prevent resprouting.Three-tined pronghoe, pick mattocks, and folding hand pruning saws are used in combinationby the Spartanburg Kudzu Coalition (www.kokudzu.com) to surgically remove kudzuroot crowns. The knot or ball structure near the soil surface contains buds for both vine androot growth. When the root crown is extracted with these or other tools, the plant is killed. Thereis no need to dig up the long tuberous roots of kudzu as they contain novine buds for regrowth.Loppers for vinecutting.Steven T. ManningMachetes, bush axes, and cane knives are useful tools for both gainingaccess in thick brush as well as cutting plants for herbicide stem injectionand cut-treat. Solid, easy-to-grip handles, hand guards, and easy-tosharpenblades are best.Shrub wrenches use a lever attached to a stem gripping device and afoot for extraction of woody root crowns. Shrub wrenches rely on operatorweight or strength to uproot nonnative plants. These extraction tools arebest suited for plants with shallow root systems, such as bush honeysuckle,Chinese privet, and other plants less than 3 inches in groundlinediameter. Some brand names include theWeed Wrench, Honeysuckle Popper, RootTalon, and Extractigator. Shrub wrenchesvary by weight, the pulling power, the size ofplant that they can handle, and their foot size.Weight is a prime consideration for packinginto remote locations. Pulling power of shrubwrenches currently available on the marketrange from 6:1 to 24:1. As an illustration of thisratio, an operator who applies 10 pounds ofleverage force to the lever handle of a shrubwrench with a 12:1 pulling power ratio exerts120 pounds of uprooting force to the plant.Foot size determines the kinds of soils theshrub wrench can be used in. Root extractionwith a shrub wrench is easiest in soft soil, butworking in soft soil also might hinder leveragewith certain models because of the foot sizeand sinking into the soil. Soil disturbanceand subsequent erosion can occur on steepslopes when wrenches are used.A shrub wrench enhanceshuman strength by thelever.Steven T. ManningManual tools for kudzu root crownextraction.Select the right size shrub wrench tomatch the shrub size.Newt Hardie