Blackberry removal around Bendigo, what actually works

Blackberry is a declared noxious weed in Victoria, and around Bendigo it loves the same country we all like: creek lines, gullies, old mine workings, shaded fence lines and anywhere with a bit of moisture. If you have it, you already know it does not go away because you cut it once.

Why it keeps coming back

Blackberry regrows from the crown and from root fragments, and it also seeds through birds and foxes. Slashing the top off removes the canes you can see and leaves the engine underneath completely intact. Six months later it is back, often thicker, because you have pruned it.

The order of work that holds

Mulch or cut the bulk of the canes so you can actually see and reach the ground. Let the regrowth come away to soft, actively growing canes. Then follow up with a targeted chemical treatment on that fresh growth, which is when the plant carries it down into the root system. Then keep watching the same spots for two to three seasons.

Skip the follow up and you have bought yourself a tidier looking infestation, nothing more.

Timing

Mechanical work suits late winter and spring when the ground carries a machine and you can see the extent of it. Herbicide follow up generally works best on actively growing canes, and licensed applicators will advise on timing and product for your situation. We are not chemical applicators, so for the spray stage we point you to someone who is.

Where machines earn their keep

A forestry mulcher handles thickets that are too woody for a slasher and too big to hand cut without a fortnight of misery. It also leaves the material on the ground as mulch, so there is no burn pile and no cart away. On steeper gully country we work to what the machine can hold safely, and hand clearing picks up the rest.

The mistakes we see most

Burning a thicket and walking away. Slashing once a year forever. Spraying tall, dusty, semi dormant canes and expecting a kill. Clearing the middle of a paddock and leaving the fence line and creek line, which is where it reseeds from.

What a decent outcome looks like

Year one you knock it back and get access. Year two you are treating regrowth, not thickets. Year three it is a maintenance walk with a spot treatment. That is what holding it looks like, and it is very achievable on most properties.

Got a job in mind? Send your address and we'll come out, have a look, and put a written quote together. No obligation.