2022-10-05

Operation Snip & Drip, killing Blackberry

 My operation "snip and drip" for invasive blackberry abatement is underway. I do about 4 dozen blackberry growths a day on weekends, and about a dozen every few days during workweek. Right now is when this has to be done, as the plants are drawing water and nutrient back to the underground rhizomes, and getting ready to abandon the canes for the winter.

I cut each cane about an inch from the soil, and then drip a single drop of 85% concentrate glyphosate onto it, using a microdrip squeeze bottle.

I've noticed that about 30 seconds after cutting, an impermeable glue layer forms over the cut. Blackberry has evolved countermeasures. So, I have to move fast: cut, drip. clear, and then move to the next. This has to be done carefully. By hand. It's probably not possible to pay someone to do the work with the necessary level of care.

This is the first and only use of chemical herbicide I've used on the property. Nothing else works on invasive blackberry, other than just digging out the soil and sieving out the roots and rhizomes. Which I've already done. Twice. And can't do around the fruit tree and in the forest. And I'm not going to widely spray this glyphosate. Just very focused snip and drip, one plant at a time, until I've killed them all. Next season I will also start doing the damn Scotch Broom and the English Ivy.

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