Bramble removal

[happybonzo]

What is the best way of removing Brambles? I have several areas that are choked by the things.

 

Is it best to use a flail mower and then spray the area or any other ideas?

 

I have had it suggested that the areas should be fenced and then leave a couple of pigs in there to sort it out.

[Carl]

My mates goat loves the things, it's the first thing she goes for, pigs would be even better as they will even dig up and eat the roots

[TonyMckenzie]

You could clear and psray off initially, the best way to manage bramble however is through shade. They are shade intolerant, try and keep a semi-closed canopy if they are in a woodland setting. If they are in the open then I suspect pigs maybe the best way to clear it.

[clueless]

i have a lot of bramble but cant use a flail mower in most places due to lots of stone on the ground. The first thing i did was split the area up into smaller areas, which in my case were then prioritised by when i would like them improved (i.e. no point starting on an acre at the back of the woods that you cant get to yet) WHat i did this year was attack them with a couple of brushcutters then pick the stone and deadwood out by hand (or with 13t digger) then thin the trees and go back in with the flail.

 

I have found though that the most effective way to get rid is by trafficking. when we first got our woods all i would do was track over the overgrown areas with the digger and i think this put the plant into shock (well for fern anyway) but you can see a noteable difference on the areas that we run on with the digger or tractor (i.e. tracks)

 

not looked at spraying off to be honest my priority was to get rid of the stone and open the areas up by thinning the trees so that our tractor and mower could fit in there and doing some maintenance mowing every now and then.

 

hope that helps.

[Luke Quenby]

Flail them down then spray the re-growth with Grazon 90 in the late spring - early summer

[detritus21]

If you can't get a flail in then use a clearing saw with mulching blade/shredder knife as the cutting head. Spray regrowth as soon as it comes through.

[Bodders]

crushing in my opinion is by far the most economic and environmentally friendly way of supressing brambles. They tend to be pretty resistant to modern safer chemicals. Brush cutters and labour are slow and expensive. Id spend a day or two in the height of summer tracking or running over them with a tractor and see if it improves enough for your needs. But then if you have young trees in your way then the other methods are probably your only option. SBK is a good spray as well as Grazon but only availble in smaller quantities if i remember rightly.

[Brushcutter]

What is the best way of removing Brambles? I have several areas that are choked by the things.

 

Is it best to use a flail mower and then spray the area or any other ideas?

 

I have had it suggested that the areas should be fenced and then leave a couple of pigs in there to sort it out.

 

Pigs will sort it out nicely. They'll turn over the woodland floor nicely too. Even better once you've put the piggies through the wood you can eat them.