Background
Common buckthorn (also known as European buckthorn) is a small shrub or tree native to Eurasia. It was introduced to North America in the 1880s as an ornamental shrub and was widely planted for fencerows and windbreaks in agricultural fields. Since then it has spread aggressively throughout southern Ontario, Quebec and in other provinces.
Common buckthorn can thrive in a wide range of soil and light conditions, enabling it to invade a variety of habitats. It is most often found in woodlands and open fields, where it forms dense stands under which few other plants can grow. Buckthorn can spread widely with the help of birds and animals that eat its fruit, carry the seeds long distances and deposit them in their droppings. Stands of buckthorn can invade roadsides, riverbanks, mature forests, farm fields and hydro corridors.
- Buckthorn thrives in a variety of habitats and forms dense thickets that crowd and shade out native plants.
- It can alter nitrogen levels in the soil, creating better conditions for its own growth and discouraging the growth of native species.
- It produces large numbers of seeds that germinate quickly and prevent the natural growth of native trees and shrubs.
- The shrub can host oat rust, a fungus that causes leaf and crown rust.
How to get rid of Buckthorn
Method One: Uprooting
Uproot young bushes, making sure to get all roots. Extraction tools are handy for larger bushes.
Method Two: Buckthorn Bagging
Cut down bushes and cover stumps
Buckthorn resprouts after it is cut down. To prevent resprouting after cutting, deprive it of light by covering the stump with a heavy black bag held in place with a cable tie. Leave the bag in place for a year.
Method 3: Applying fungicide
When: Late spring and early summer
How: Cutting or girdling
Small to medium sized bushes:
- Cut stems to 10cm or less from the ground
- Stems less than 6” wide: paint a thin layer of Lalcide Chondro to cover the entire stem.
- Stems more than 6”: paint a wide band around the circumference making sure to include a little bark
Large bushes
- Girdle a 3cm wide band 10 cm or less from the ground.
- Paint or squeeze Lalcide Chondro to cover the entire cut surface, making sure to cover some of the bark above and below to seal it.
Tools
Note that different tools will be needed for multi-stemmed bushes as opposed to single stemmed ones. Multi-stemmed bushes will require removal of one or more stems to ensure that all stems are girdled and coated with fungicide.
More resources:
Invasive species: Rhamnus cathartica
