Also, looks a lot like brambles but there are no berried fruits or flowers that I have noticed!! Description again: upright and arching (whip-like), have brances that branch orr...leaves in 3's spaced out on stems...dark red/brown when mature or green stalks/stems when young, has bristles or prickles, at least 10 feet in height. When dead, turn woody but break easily. Possible rhizome or root ball...forms thickets which can not be penetrable unless you want to get hurt.

This is the first year growth of a berry probably a blackberry. The new growth comes up like this next year will flower and have berries. Look around for a older woodier stem probably with white or pink berries. Cut down stems, then when new growth shows up hit with weed or brush killer. Please follow directions too much will not kill.

Killing berries is not a one pass with killer and all gone it may take several years to gain control.

Thanks.. I think I am just going to get some total vegetation killer. Maybe that will give me time to till the soil and rake up roots...then plant grass next year. The thing is...everything fits for the blackberries...except for the berries and flowers! I haven't seen anything of the sort. I have a huge thicket of this stuff and the mature ones are the ones I am trying to get rid of so they are obvious to find. Oh well...

I had better luck just pulling mine. I had two large patches and pulled them up and cut them into pieces (they whip around and grab the back of your head if you don't!). Left the pieces on the ground to rot. Next year, I sprayed what few sprouts there were and by year three, I didn't see any more.

I would say it took me a few hours on maybe five days to clear both patches and was worth it to be able to get the roots out since they run. If you just spray them, you still have to clear the dead canes.

I have the same kind of weeds except the leaves are more heart-shaped. These whips encircle small trees and the trunks of large trees just like Poison Ivy does. They have round, green seeds which when mature will fall and generate new plants. Roundup does not work. I intend to spray Bleach on them as a cheap option. Mine proliferate in the woods of my backyard and the runners are hard to dig up since there are so many tree roots entangled with them. Unless you dig up 100%, planting grass over the area is a waste of time as they are very hardy, prolific, and fast growers.

My neighbor told me I had briars. these grow from roots that look like potatoes. He said the roots are used to make what is called "briar pipes" i.e. smoking pipes. i need to get rid of them under a tree so i can put ground cover. maybe there is a ground cover that will choke out the briars.