Difficult for the chickens to eat ticks when they get quickly picked off! We have chickens–no way can they free range, at least without becoming a tasty buffet for the wildlife. Coyotes, fox, bobcat, hawks…even bears. 😮
If you can burn it, that’d be my go to but if not some good loppers and a hedging saw. Oh and some really sturdy gloves for sure!
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We mow paths through and around them, so we can get to the other side and to prevent them from spreading. It’s just that much easier than taking on the entire briar patch, which often includes rocks and stumps, which is how it became an unmowed briar patch to start with.
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Our hens free range, but only during the day when we’re home. The only time I’ve lost any is when I’ve forgotten to lock them up at night.
Not a bad idea. They’re so prolific, and ouchy, and aggressive.
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Lucky! I’ve lost birds out of my extra boys flock that used to free range near the barn during the day, and also lost a hen from the coop that always flew over the (7 foot!) fence to lay her egg in the barn every day.
”‹”‹”‹”‹”‹”‹I’ve even chased a fox off, who was eyeing up a few roosters I had tied out–while I was in the barn, maybe 40’ away!
Predators are brave…and hungry…here. I wouldn’t have chickens anymore if I free ranged the flock daily. But the wildlife would be well fed!
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I don’t even have any dogs running around loose anymore, but for some reason, the coyotes and fox only seem to come through the yard at night (we see their tracks in the snow). We occasionally see them further away from the house, but the hens don’t roam that far and I think are pretty quick to run to the barn if they if they see strange “dogs” or large birds flying overhead.
She said she is in a swamp, which implies wetlands. Putting any kind of herbicide into wetlands is not good for the environment, including both flora and fauna. Bad idea.
I’ve had to clear this stuff before, and my choice was a weedeater with a blade. It’s not fun, but you can actually grind into the roots with it, and do a pretty complete job. Of course, I also found that there was poison ivy, that had no leaves on it. That’s a story for another time.
The nice thing about the weedeater is that you can get over, under, and around what you are attempting to remove.
Good luck!
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You can buy heads for weed wackers that have metal blades. https://www.walmart.com/ip/Grass-Gat…lades/20370628
https://www.homedepot.com/p/ECHO-10-in-3-Cutter-Metal-Blade-20-mm-99944200047/202702094
That’s the type of thing I use.
It’s spring. And “April showers bring May flowers.” Meaning if the ground is nominally wet at this time of year it’s REALLY wet. So maybe the OP should “shelve” the project until July or August when rainfall is likely less and the heat of summer has evaporated some of the normal wetness. At that point mechanical clearing might be at least a possibility, if not a probability.
If these are truly “invader species” it’s fair to balance the need to protect the environment from such things with the risks that flow from the use of herbicides.
G.
P.S. Just for information I looked up the average, monthly rainfall numbers for Springfield, MA (not knowing exactly where you are). You get about 75% of our annual rainfall, but our late summer/early fall is quite droughty and November through May very rainy. You might have your best chance in August as, along with July, it’s a relatively dry month on average. Given what you have now and are about to get the project might just be better off done then. For details see https://www.weather-us.com/en/massachusetts-usa/springfield-climate#rainfall
And yet, somehow I believe that DEP, amongst others, would disagree.
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Or Guinee Hens (sp). though they tend to become fox food… yes, totally depends on what kind of briars they are, and barberry is awful! Blackberries? Not so much. Sounds like hosspuller might have your best solution, then when you can get close to the roots, dig them out.
They might. They would be wrong, but they might.
G.
Do you have an anecdote about your time as an environmental scientist? Because, I’m waiting for it…:lol:
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We have multiflora rose. It’s easier to clear it with two people. One pulls the briars back with a long handled cultivator rake, which is like a hooked hay fork, the other cuts the stems with long reach loppers (Fiskars makes ours). The long loppers are easier; you don’t have to keep bending over to cut. Once an area is cleared, we grub out the roots with the cultivator. I have also spot sprayed or painted the stems with brush killer, not a wholesale overspray. We burn the stuff we cut. With multiflora rose, even the tiniest root can resprout. It’s time intensive, not really hard work, and it’s outside.
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