When You Have a Buckthorn Outbreak
Buckthorn leaves
You can stop invasive buckthorn from driving all the native plants out of your woods.
- Pull. Pull small plants by hand. For larger plants, a tool such as a weed wrench can help.
- Herbicide. Spray foliage with a herbicide—glyphosate or triclopyr.
- Cut and herbicide. Just cutting the shrubs down won't work. They'll resprout. You can apply a herbicide to the cut stump. This website lists some herbicide applications that have been found to work.
- Cut and cover. If you only have a few plants, cut them down and cover the stumps with a tin can or black plastic to stop resprouting.
- Fire. If you have fire-adapted woods, prescribed fires will help control buckthorn. It can resprout, so fire has to be repeated regularly.
A local extension agent or forester can help you work out how to control buckthorn on your land--and what native plants you might want to plant instead.
The best way to deal with buckthorn may be to keep it from getting established in the first place.
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