New oaks & briars- advice needed

[Stere]

 

 

 

 I use a brushcutter with a mulch blade then  hedging shears  closer in to the tree

 

Also mark tree locations with  bamboo canes etc.

 

 

 

 

Edited February 11, 2023 by Stere

[richyrich]

Oregon mulch blade. Look on Amazon, etc..

[Mr. Ed]

Yes I have a mulching head for the brush cutter - a great thing indeed. I need to make a big inspection next week and work out how much we have to do it’s gonna be to make it work. Probably a combination of brush cutting and hand and foot care. As to manpower we were thinking of a Workaway sort of thing. We’re in a popular holiday area and are hospitable people. 

[Guest Gimlet]

Wouldn't Grazon kill the bramble and briar without hurting the trees? If so you could patch-spray around the saplings.

[Mr. Ed]

We’re trying to do it without spraying. We’re not militantly organic but if we’re arranging the woodland for diversity and nature it would be a bit perverse to start it with a load of herbicide. And no, I don’t have the appetite for a fundamental row about it - we get enough of that in the real world.
We have a small problem of invasive species in the older part of the woods so there’d be no end of work for Wwoofers.  

[coppice cutter]

1 hour ago, Mr. Ed said:

We’re trying to do it without spraying. We’re not militantly organic but if we’re arranging the woodland for diversity and nature it would be a bit perverse to start it with a load of herbicide. And no, I don’t have the appetite for a fundamental row about it - we get enough of that in the real world.
We have a small problem of invasive species in the older part of the woods so there’d be no end of work for Wwoofers.  

Fully agree with that approach.

 

In fairness, most on here are essentially contractors, get a job done as cost effectively as possible, maximise profit.

 

Which is fine from a business perspective, that's how such things must be.

 

But your problem will be best sorted with time and labour if you can arrange it.

[Stere]

What invasive species?

 

A small  woodland a look after has some winter heliotrope.  Its very invasive.

 

 

 

 

[Mr. Ed]

that heliotrope does look very happy there. We have something like a himalayan balsam, but that's not quite it. Not too difficult to deal with - crushing it or digging it up dissuades it no end. And a wee bit of rhododenron.

[openspaceman]

2 hours ago, Stere said:

What invasive species?

 

A small  woodland a look after has some winter heliotrope.  Its very invasive.

 

 

 

 

My wife was given a bit of this as something to get rid of ground elder, a bit like swallowing a spider to catch a fly.

 

I have spent two summers plucking the leaves off so far.

[Stere]

That stuff is  worse than ground elder i reckon in that it seems to spread alot faster.

Edited February 12, 2023 by Stere