by Susan Pang
Spring is here and it is noticeable that the first shrub to leaf out are often invasive bush honeysuckles. Leafing out first crowds out light and nutrients to native forbs that benefit our native pollinators. Invasives like honeysuckle proliferate because they are the first to leaf out and the last to drop their leaves in the fall. Bush honeysuckle is known to be allelopathic âhaving a toxic effect on nearby plants–to make matters even worse.
Chemical treatments to eradicate bush honeysuckle may have greater health and environment impacts than the infestation. Only time and good science will tell. To err on the safe side, itâs good to know that there are tools and methods available for clearing and other ideas on how to use the wood, once it is dislodged or cut from the ground.
Jay Doty, a specialist in bush honeysuckle removal, uses a technique known as âroot dockingâ and itâs done with tools versus chemicals. He has been working on restoring a several acre institutional parcel behind our home. Jay says, âRoot docking helps you to know your land and soils and the flora and fauna of your property better, making you the best land steward you can be.â He uses tools like the Pulaski (the beast) by Rogue Hoe to root dock. He also carries with him a reciprocating saw, loppers, pruners, and a folding saw. Small plants can be pulled out easily especially if the soil is damp.
After the bush honeysuckle is cut out of the ground, Jay has a rather ingenious idea of stacking the cut up trunks and limbs into very neat piles that serve as habitat for small mammals and song birds. Especially in an infested forest, these piles serve as a life line as the property might not have much else on it once the invasive plant material is down. Termites eat the wood and over the next few years the piles will degrade. Jay recommends starting your debris piles on a log or surface thatâs not soil – just in case! Some of the debris can be chipped and wood left on site for trails.
Another creative use of the material can be found on the website, www.woodworms.net. This website is packed with information on everything from the relationship between bush honeysuckle and mosquitoes to an eye feast of beautiful furniture pieces all built by local artisan Dale Dufer out of bush honeysuckle material.
Another method we are going to try on this parcel is cut and cover. Weâll cover the cut stumps with black plastic bags for a year. Non-chemical treatments open up areas for humans, song birds and wildlife immediately. Sometimes woodland seeds lying dormant for years wake up too. Sometimes you might want to seed or buy trees and shrubs from the conservation department to add competition as bush honeysuckle will try to come back persistently once it has infested an area.
The shrubs we are going to put back onto the land are species that compete against bush honeysuckle. Suckering plants like elderberry and smooth sumac might work well. Check back here for an update in the future detailing what shrubs worked the best on this parcel!
Editorâs note: The referenced parcel can be seen by visiting site # 38 at 11 Graeser Acres on the 2019 Tour Sunday.Â