Locust yrs until seed production?

I don't have as much experience with Honey Locust and I know that deer will occasionally eat the pods, but black locusts are worthless in my book. On my properties black locust spread mainly through their extensive root system not from seeding, which is why you often see them in clusters. They grow fast and are invasive. You will probably have to use chemicals to get rid of them unless you are mowing them consistently.
 
I have both and black locust are a pain. If you have erosion problems and can't get anything to grow tgey will fix your problem. The trouble is getting rid of them. For the last three years I've been cutting and spraying and it's like fighting the mythical Hydra, for ever head you cut off three more takes its place.
 
For the last three years I've been cutting and spraying and it's like fighting the mythical Hydra, for ever head you cut off three more takes its place.
Try basal spraying vs. cutting to kill the whole "colony" of trees...the parent and all the little devil babies that will pop up if you were to cut it. Leave it standing at least a growing season after spraying and let the chemical work through the entire system before cutting or pushing it out.
 
Try basal spraying vs. cutting to kill the whole "colony" of trees...the parent and all the little devil babies that will pop up if you were to cut it. Leave it standing at least a growing season after spraying and let the chemical work through the entire system before cutting or pushing it out.

I cut and stump spray immediately (don't want dead ones falling over and leaving thorns on the ground so I remove everything at once). I know that cutting alone only encourages the devil stuff, but do you find that cutting and stump spraying has the same colony kill as a basal spray?
 
I cut and stump spray immediately (don't want dead ones falling over and leaving thorns on the ground so I remove everything at once). I know that cutting alone only encourages the devil stuff, but do you find that cutting and stump spraying has the same colony kill as a basal spray?
Not sure about basal spraying but I paint the stump with a undiluted mic of roundup and crossbow kills the tree I paint but many more return, my hope is if I get enough they will eventually die
 
Not sure about basal spraying but I paint the stump with a undiluted mic of roundup and crossbow kills the tree I paint but many more return, my hope is if I get enough they will eventually die

I'm assuming the returning trees are suckering from root? Let me post this question; if the original tree is allowed to grow will it send up suckers, or will it put all of it's energy into making one large tree?
 
Eventually it will sucker as well though it worse when u cut one down
 
Here are several personal examples and the outcomes:

1) Felled a 10" diameter locust tree with a saw and hit the wet stump with glyphosate. A few months later not only had a few sucker stems come from the stump, but numerous devil babies had popped up within a 15-20ft radius. I treated each with glyphosate and haven't see any new sprouts since that time.

2) Plucked a 10" diameter tree out with a trackhoe roots and all, and have seen no sprouts in/around the site of removal. This area is now row-cropped so it's possible there were sprouts but burndown applications prior to drilling corn/beans killed them after a couple of planting seasons.

3) Basal sprayed the bottom 8-10" of stem with Garlon 4 + diesel as the carrier/penetrant (dormant season). By late summer/early fall could push the dead brittle tree over and there were no new adjacent spouts observed.

We do ALOT of TSI focused on removing invasives, improving species mix, adding longterm timber value, and of course habitat improvement. The most reliable method I've found in a forested environment where there are target and non-target trees is basal spray while dormant, leave it standing for a growing season, and that site (from that particular parent tree) is reclaimed. Now, there could still be seed waiting there to germinate but as far as that tree and the associated sucker devil babies...they're history.

During the winter months we don backpack sprayers with Garlon + diesel and hit the timber. Locust, privet, sweetgum, maple, trees with poor form, and other junk trees get the lower 6-10" painted depending on their diameter. Can cover a lot of ground quickly, you just won't see the effect immediately like with a saw. One full year later decaying junk stems litter the forest floor, the canopy is opened up, and the remaining "keepers" are off and running.
 
Lot of good info. Thanks.

Here are several personal examples and the outcomes:

1) Felled a 10" diameter locust tree with a saw and hit the wet stump with glyphosate. A few months later not only had a few sucker stems come from the stump, but numerous devil babies had popped up within a 15-20ft radius. I treated each with glyphosate and haven't see any new sprouts since that time.

2) Plucked a 10" diameter tree out with a trackhoe roots and all, and have seen no sprouts in/around the site of removal. This area is now row-cropped so it's possible there were sprouts but burndown applications prior to drilling corn/beans killed them after a couple of planting seasons.

3) Basal sprayed the bottom 8-10" of stem with Garlon 4 + diesel as the carrier/penetrant (dormant season). By late summer/early fall could push the dead brittle tree over and there were no new adjacent spouts observed.

We do ALOT of TSI focused on removing invasives, improving species mix, adding longterm timber value, and of course habitat improvement. The most reliable method I've found in a forested environment where there are target and non-target trees is basal spray while dormant, leave it standing for a growing season, and that site (from that particular parent tree) is reclaimed. Now, there could still be seed waiting there to germinate but as far as that tree and the associated sucker devil babies...they're history.

During the winter months we don backpack sprayers with Garlon + diesel and hit the timber. Locust, privet, sweetgum, maple, trees with poor form, and other junk trees get the lower 6-10" painted depending on their diameter. Can cover a lot of ground quickly, you just won't see the effect immediately like with a saw. One full year later decaying junk stems litter the forest floor, the canopy is opened up, and the remaining "keepers" are off and running.
 
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