Use of undiluted herbicides, even regular bleach, is not allowed -- glad
I only did it once, and not as a spray, but as a little bit put down in
a hole drilled in the trunk base of a sawed-off honeysuckle shrub. This
may work later in the season, but only in dilutions stated in an
excellent reference by the Nature Conservancy available as a book or
online, The Handbook of Weed Controls, Chapter 1. I never, ever
use these as a spray technique anyway; in fact, I don't use most
herbicides, weed controls, at all.
As they say, proper controls are labor and time intensive, which is why I
emphasized that even a little bit done by a lot of folks matters. At
this point, get a big trash bag (I use large, emptied dog biscuit, cat
litter bags, too), cut off as many of those tiny paired-green-berry
twigs, branches, as possible, and get them to the dump. Hey, even two
berries count; wait 'til you see how many are on a tiny twig! I'll be
looking at other remedies later in the season and am hoping that
individuals, town and state road crews and organizations will go after
the blossoms early enough next spring to have an impact, recognizing the
work many already do.
As emphasized in my letter, wild honeysuckle is a major threat to our
forests, native species, and wildlife for which so many of us care.
Judy Larson DiMario
Fayston
Former member of House Agriculture Committee
P.S. About the town orchard for which Waitsfield received
funding: Many thanks, also, to Valerie Capels, for keeping on our toes
those many of us who joined in the daily campaign. What a great project!
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