Well, labor isn't cheap or easy, but it's gonna be the only way... Digging in to the dirt at new growth, chopping, and even burning..

Buy burning, I mean safely making a bonfire on top of the main roots, and keep the fire going for hours and hours...

Be careful with the fire though. ...

I actually took a 20 year old oak down ( killed it) by having a fire at it's base... the next year half of the trunk died and got some fungus, and the year after it felled, and this year I am using it as firewood( we used a chainsaw to cut it up.

SO, there's nothing free.... but wysteria is so pretty... but yeah, in GA it can be invasive and I see MASSIVE flowerings of it every year..

Did you know that about the time that the Wysteria flowers every year, the Morel mushrooms are also growing?...

RoundUp (glyphosate) will definitely work if applied correctly and at the right time. Unfortunately, now is not the right time at all.

For the wisteria, I would wait until fall, just as you first start to see some of the tree leaves changing color. Cut all of the stems near ground level. Apply concentrated (at least around 18%) glyphosate to the freshly cut stump soon after making the cuts. BTW, some RoundUp formulations (the more concentrated ones) ARE labeled for this use. Do not used the wimpy pre-mixed stuff; it only works well for very-easy-to-kill stuff like tender grass. I would also recommend that you not use the RoundUp that claims extra quick results; it contains other chemicals that actually makes it LESS EFFECTIVE for many applications. It doesn't take much RoundUp to do the job when the applications are targeted in this way.

For the English Ivy, the biggest obstacle is the waxy coating on the leaves. Adding a surfactant (wetting agent) to your herbicide can help. Many formulations already contain some surfactant, but not a lot. Also, mixing a little stronger than you normally would for normal brush killing can help. In some cases, a single application can be successful. Sometimes you may have to hit it more than once. As with the wisteria, using the slow-results type of RoundUp is more effective in the long run.

Another thing that can be done for the English Ivy applications is to add a small amount of diesel fuel to the mix. You'll probably see many recommendations for this online. There are issues with this technique (proper containers must be used, probably not the most environmentally-friendly thing to do, etc), but it is an option that some find useful.

well unfortunately i cant burn it its on some property that a am allowed to use and its behind a few businesses i used round up on it last yr but it was the fast acting formula so maybe thats why it ddnt work on it il try the other formula on it this spring thank you both for the advice herboil what are Morel mushrooms

Shane 86, Morel Mushrooms are just like any mushroom you can buy in the Grocery store like Button, Shittake, or Portobello mushrooms, except that they have a much shorter season, cannot be cultivated by mass croppings, and generally are prized because of their rarity and beauty( and taste).
Speaking of fires, the morel mushrooms often grow in fire zones, and specifically riverside or old orchard areas. And they only grow for a short time each year in very specific areas... for 2-6 weeks at most( some people say)

Anyways, can you give us some more insight as to WHY you want to get rid of the wysteria, and just how bad the area is and how thick the vines/grove are, and also some pictures might help to asses the area and how to control with without killing it.

Are you trying to plant other things there, or just do away with it?

We recently moved on to property that had not been maintained for over 6 years. Wisteria has taken over trees and much of the landscape. We have tried everything to kill it. We have mowed up the small shoots that seem to be everywhere with no direct connection to a main source.

We have tried to plow them up. We have burnt them. We have sprayed them with various chemicals like Round-up, but all to no avail. They seem to be everywhere and just continue to keep popping up and multiplying. Some areas of our yard look like it is covered in wild ferns, but is simply small wisteria plants growing. When I try to pull them up, they rip, but no roots come with them! :(

Please help! What can we do? I am not even sure where the main plant is! I follow vines, but there are so many but they seem to lead no where directly!

Get a box of florist picks. Put round up/herbicide in them (they are meant to hold water), put the cap on and stick it in the ground next to the end of a vine. Stick the tip of the vine into the container and let it "drink it up".

Here is a link that might be useful: Example, see green ones with spikes

I recently moved to an old farmhouse that has several decades' worth of wisteria run rampant in a good portion of the yard. It is so bad in spots that there can be many hundreds of vines (ranging from tiny to 1"+ thick) criss-crossing a mere 6'x10' area. I am determined to reclaim my yard from this awful beast! I appreciate reading people's tips and experiences.
I just got an "Extractigator" (tree wrench) in hopes that it would help to pull up the big vines where they've rooted (the roots can go 3'+ straight into the ground and are impossible to pull up by hand). It works very well! Since wisteria is so soft and fibrous, sometimes the tool loses grip after crushing the top of the segment, but for the most part it does a great job. I've attached a photo of a 3' root that I pulled up right after I got the tool (I was very excited!).
The tiny vines can be easily pulled up by hand. But when I get to a "mother" plant (that's what I call them - the huge clumps that are the sources for many of the vines) that is too big around to pull with the tree wrench (which has a 2" capacity), I saw it to ground level and paint brush killer on it. Not sure yet how effective that is, but will report back.

This post was edited by strom on Fri, Apr 25, 14 at 19:05

I have wisteria "hysteria"! Wisteria is so invasive that it is girdling trees on the bank behind my house. With a knee replacement last year and then a terrible case of poison ivy + reaction to the prednisone this past March and April, I am behind the game. I tried to pull out wisteria in early March but must have come in contact with PI. Anyway, it's going to be a job! Physical clearing and chemicals - was told to use an abrasive scrubber on the "bark" - then paint abraded area with brush killer - rubber gloves + long sleeves. Oh my.

For those of you who love Wisteria but hate its aggressive side, try the native, American Wisterias (not the Asian ones). They are much more manageable, and also beautiful.

Sorry, there ain't no easy or quick solution! I dumped a pickup load of scraps from a heart pine saw mill on top of the main source. Burned on it for 3 days, disked it many times with a tractor. I leveled the area, reclaimed it as yard, mow it everytime I cut the yard. New wisteria sprouts still come up on that spot! GOOD LUCK. Persistence is the main ingredient!

Oh, goodness. I guess I didn't realize that it would overtake everything. I planted a small stump so that it would climb my fence. Do you think II should get rid of it now, while it's small? It's pretty close to my peach and cherry trees.

Good to know! I'll pull the vine I planted now. :) Thanks so much for preventing a disaster later!

I hate it. My neighbor has it in her yard and she's old so I have to deal with it. She's selling soon and I hope someone young buys the house.

I've tried killing it in the fall with some success. I trim back most of it then I get a few heavy duty Ziploc bags with a few paper towels in them. I then get the most powerful round up, soak the paper towels, put it around the remaining leaves and tape it shut. It'll kill that section of the plant.

Good luck

This is the 3rd season I've mowed the wisteria patch that I burned and ground up with a tractor! I now have a thick patch of grass in the area. Today I counted 12 wisteriar sprouts that have come up thru the grass, the damn stuff just will not die.

too bad they quit making Enforcer. It killed brush and even Virginia Creeper. Needed some last year but no longer available. Anything that works, seems to disappear from the market.

An old Wisteria that has an established root system is extremely difficult to eradicate. The roots spread everywhere underground, and keep sending up shoots year after year, no matter how many times and how frequently they are cut back. The only way I can see is to get in there and dig up all of the roots, which is very labor intensive.

People should be warned before they plant Wisteria. It may be pretty, but it is extremely vigorous growing and can quickly take over other plants after several years, like a jungle vine. It can also be messy each season with all those flowers falling, and the flowers develop a less than pleasant smell after being left on the ground for a week.

Once again, I will suggest to plant the native Wisteria (W. frutescens)..., not nearly as aggressive as either the Chinese or Japanese species (ones most commonly planted).

we're more interested in killing what has already been planted.

I have been working to kill Wisteria in my easement since I bought this place in 2010 and it's still here. When I bought the place it covered the back fence and hung from the trees. I spray the leaves with 2.4.D (you can buy concentrate at Southern States), then I take a saw to the large pieces. If it's in the trees, all you have to do is cut the piece that roots to the ground and the rest will die (that's a great feeling watching that stuff wilt) I had several trees that had been girdled and used a bow saw. You can paint the raw cuts with the concentrate. Look along the ground and find the long runners and clip those too. I go out in the easement twice a year now to maintain it. I'll never completely get rid of it because I have neighbors that don't care but the stretch behind my house is almost completely clear. I did sneak over this morning into my neighbor's patch and hacked down a vine that was as big around as my upper arm. All this time I thought it was a sapling. You may not be able to completely get rid of it if your neighbors aren't helping but you can get it to a twice yearly management. What sprouts up in my yard from seed, I just mow down. If you can find the source plant, you can do a lot of damage by hacking that one to bits. It gets less and less each year. It's hard work, there's no way around that but it will get better and better.

Do be careful with 2.4.D, as it will vaporize above 90 degrees and kill lots of other unintended things. You have to spray early in the morning or late at night so the spray will dry before it gets too hot.

this site may be helpful. It recommends several products for Chinese and Japanese varieties http://msdssearch.dow.com/PublishedLiteratureDAS/dh_0935/0901b80380935322.pdf?filepath=ivm/pdfs/noreg/010-50217.pdf&fromPage=GetDoc

I use agriculture strength roundup and it works. Not sure if it can be bought at most stores, but ask at TSC. We have a store geared to farmers in my area and that's where we get ours.

ETA...forgot, I mix it 2 oz. per gal. of water to apply or stronger if I want quicker results.

what is TSC?

TSC =Tractor Supply Company

Not environmentally friendly, but... We planted it around our deck and gazebo. Loved it for a few years, until it started killing our plants and trees, and actually damaging the deck. Tried everything. I finally picked up some very concentrated commercial bleach, skinned the vines (potato peeler), located the big root clusters, skinned those (hatchet), and went to town with the bleach. That was three years ago. ZERO new growth. Since it was under and around the deck, we were not planning on planting stuff there. Smelled like a chemical plant exploded for a couple of days, but it worked. Under our deck looked like a cable run for an apartment complex - thumb-thick vines - almost a hundred of them - everywhere.

Rick-I love to hear someone was successful at killing the stuff! It takes extreme measures. I watched a vine kill a 20" thick Pine tree in my mothers back yard. The group of vines I exposed and burned out were probably 70 or 80 years old and it was a pure war to get them out of my yard.

I use either Remedy Ultra or a combination of Remedy Ultra ($$) and Reclaim ($$$) for a number of pesty plants with great results. Does not kill fast but kills. Expensive but so is time and re-treatment. Same formula for killing Mesquite trees (slang for it is Brush Busters), had a Wisteria that had been cut down several times so one day I was treated mesquite and gave it a spray. Have not seen signs for a couple of years. Also did a number of some trumpet vines.

does roundup work well in the spring? I have been fighting wisteria all winter; which has taken over about an acre of hard woods. I have burned pulled and hacked and clipped. I go back with a stump killer. Now I plan on roundup. any more suggestions?

If you can get your hands on some Tordon Herbicide, that should work. Wherever you see woody shoots, cut the bark away with a knife and either paint or spray it on the raw portion and let it soak in liberally. I cut a 3" stalk that was climbing up a white oak in my back yard last season and painted the cut with concentrated Tordon and it worked nicely. Avoid spraying if you can and put the poison where it counts.