How to get rid of thorn bushes in woods

Whenever I mow my lawn, I’m on the lookout for anything that can hurt me or my equipment — especially pricker bushes.

Every week or two, in the summer, I hop on my John Deere riding mower and head toward an hour and a half journey of getting my yard looking halfway decent.

But around the edge of my property (in certain spots) are large pricker bushes. And it seems like their branches grow faster and farther into our space than any other tree, vine or even other pesky plant life.

And if I miss one at my level and pass it while mowing… Ouch!

Pricker bushes are a nuisance. Whenever I see one, I grab the hedge trimmer and tame it back. But a few weeks later, there’s always another branch.

Which led me to want to know how to get rid of a pricker bush — once and for all!

If you’re one of millions who’ve experienced the uncomfortable poke from thorns or needle-like pricks from small pricker bushes then you know as well as anybody that they are NOT fun to have in your yard or garden!

So how do we get rid of them? Here are a few tips and tricks to it…

How to Get Rid of a Pricker Bush (Step-by-Step)

Identify the pricker bush!

First, in order to remove the pricker bush, we want to identify it. How big is it? Are the thorns on the bush small or large? Is it viney or bush-like? Also how can we remove and dispose of the bush safely?

Do this over your entire yard. For us, there were dozens of individual bushes across the edge or our nearly 2 acre perimeter.

Small Pricker Bushes

For the majority of small pricker bushes whether they’re rooted bushes or small, thorny vines, you can manage to rid them of your yard or garden by cutting or pulling them. If pulling them is your method of choice, gloves are recommended due to the thorns.  

Overgrown?

In addition to this method, if the small pricker bushes happen to be overgrown, chop them as low as possible to the ground with long-handled hedge trimmers. Do not use any power tools such as a chainsaw or hedge trimmers! Power tools often catch the branches, throwing them back at you.

Rooted?

If the smaller or larger pricker bushes are rooted, (after chopping them as low to the ground as possible) uproot them by digging them up with rooting shovels!

Large Pricker Bushes

For larger pricker bushes, (much like the smaller ones..) you’ll need to cut them down as low to the ground as possible. After chopping them down, you’ll need to uproot them to prevent them from coming back again and spreading! When cutting down the bushes, protective clothing is recommended such as:

• Long pants
• Long sleeve shirt
• Thick gloves
• Protective eyewear (goggles)

Disposing of the removed bushes

When disposing of the uprooted bushes or sharp, thorny trimmings there are a few ways to go about it…

• Burning: Depending on your location, you could burn them. Some places require burn permits or burning is only permitted certain times of the year.
• Bag Them: Another way to dispose of them is to simply bag them. Because they are sharp, double bagging may help with bags tearing.

Know how to get rid of a pricker bush now?

Overall dealing with pricker or thorn bushes is not anyone’s ideal day but once the space they occupy is clear and usable you’ll feel 100 times better! Also once removed, cleaned up, and disposed of, make sure to check your self and your clothing for thorns! Pesky thorns may be stuck in the folds of your clothing or under the fabric.

Pricker bushes are typical trees in the forest with sharply pointed plant parts. The plant’s epidermis or cortex regularly produces these sharp, pointed elements.

Growing thorny plants as a yard barrier helps keep humans and animals out of your yard.

Not only do natural defenses around your garden, but the evergreen shrub and thorny plants also give you space. The simplicity of the dense foliage, pricker bush, and thorny shrubs will not lose the inherent natural beauty of the garden.

However, pricker bushes or thorny shrubs, thorny bushes are a nagging concern for some people. Even if you remove them with a lawn mower, thorny stems, and spiky plants can grow back again.

Don’t worry, we will help you get rid of pricker bushes, and thorny bushes forever and make faster results. Let’s take a closer look at this now!

Contents

• 1. Simple Ways to Remove Thorn Bushes
• 2. Removing And Discarding The Bushes
• 3. Pricker Bushes Welt Treatment
• 4. Conclusion

Simple Ways to Remove Thorn Bushes

Before removing the prinker bushes, and spiky plants you should put on a long-sleeve shirt and long pants made of thick materials to avoid your skin being ripped up.

You also wear heavy-duty work gloves and boots to protect yourself from being pricked by thorns, and prickly plants.

Depending on the size of the pricker bushes, shrub roses, or evergreen shrubs you can choose the appropriate way to get rid of them below:

Small

The small pricker bushes

To make pricker bush removal and thorn bushes easier, you should dig down around them using a shovel or spade.

Next, grasp the thorn shrub near its roots that has the fewest thorns and pull it up. If pricker bushes still have roots, you should cut them to kill them thoroughly. Burning them is also an effective way. However, it takes longer than usual to convert to ash.

You can dispose of the little thorn shrub at a nearby landfill. They will process garden garbage in the same manner.

Overgrown

The overgrown pricker bushes

First, you use a long-handled branch cutter to cut down branches as high as possible. Or you can use hand tools to remove them easily.

Do not use electric cutting tools or equipment such as lawn mowers, as it may cause the spikes to shoot back at you.

After chopping off all the branches, grab a shovel and dig around the bush’s base to dislodge the roots. If the roots are so strong,

Once you’ve removed the roots of the thorny shrub, fill the hole with soil. This is an effective way to kill all pricker bushes in one go, and they can grow again.

More to read: How Can Clay Soil Be Improved Without Tilling?

Overgrown thorny bushes should not be used in fire pits since they might take longer to burn than conventional wood. Taking overgrown thorns to the garbage is the easiest way to get rid of them.

Large

The large pricker bushes

It’s more difficult for the large prinker bushes than for the smaller ones. Cut them down as close to the ground as you can.

You bund the pricker bushes’ branches by wrapping heavy twine around them carefully. Use a shovel to dig around the bush until you can see the root system underneath.

Start pulling up the bush by pushing the shovel under the bush’s root system. With the spade, you might need to cut through more difficult roots. If the roots are too deep in the earth, you can pull them up with a shovel.

Pry until you can remove the entire bush from the ground. Pricker bushes cannot grow in loose, dry soil. So you should add bare dirt to the bush hole, which will make the bushes die off in 1 to 2 weeks.

Removing And Discarding The Bushes

You might take several approaches when getting rid of uprooted plants or prickly, pointy cuttings.

There are two solutions below:

Depending on where you are, you could burn them. Burning down will make the bushes die quickly, but it takes time for the fire to establish itself in the plant’s roots. Some locations need burn licenses or only allow burning during specific times of the year.

Another method of disposal is to bag the items. Double bagging could prevent bags from breaking because of their sharp edges.

More to read: Apartment Composting Without Worms Instructions

Pricker Bushes Welt Treatment

Even though you always be careful and wear gloves when removing the pricker bushes, your skin still possibly suffers welts from them.

Moreover, the thorny spines can stick to your skin and draw blood when you try to remove them.

To lessen swelling, the best way to treat welts is to soak the affected region in cool or cold water.

If you have any cuts from pricker bushes on your body, immediately cleanse the area where the cuts are. Then apply an antibacterial ointment and cover with a bandage to stop any infection or potential reaction.

Conclusion

So, we give you simple techniques to get rid of pricker bushes of various sizes, ranging from little to overgrown, as well as pricker bushes, sweat treatment, and two standard methods for removing them.

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