Late Season Cut-Stump Treatments

Question: What are late season cut-stump treatments? Why is this method preferable to stump removal?

Answer: Late season cut-stump treatments are where we go in, actually physically cut the tree down, and then we use a systemic herbicide painted onto the stump, and that will eradicate the actual tree. We generally do this on Chinese tallow, which is an invasive tree. It is more successful that way because you get the chemical to the actual root and get some good systemic kill on the tree, versus a foliar application, which is done generally mid-summer.

If you try to dig up the stump you don’t get all the plant, so it can reestablish from a partially left stump. And generally, the scale of the problem is too big to be able to remove all of the stumps. So if you had to go in and excavate all those areas, which are generally in a wetland, it would take way too long. So if you go in and do cut stumps, generally a two-man crew can get five, six acres of effective kill in a day.