r/botany • u/user2084757858589499 • 7d ago
Will glyphosate or triclopyr leach from roots into water or soil? Physiology
Hello, I am looking to remove large swaths of invasive blackberry in my yard, which borders on a stream running directly into a lake. In my research, I have found that carefully brushing the cut stems of the blackberry with an herbicide is effective at killing the rhizomes without harming the surrounding plants. This is key because they are surrounded by natives that I am trying to restore. However, I am very cautious about using herbicide due to the sensitive wetland and stream ecosystems the invaders are occupying. Do herbicides leach out from roots? How are they processed within the systems of the plant if applied in this manner? Thank you very much for your help!
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u/DirtyBotanist 7d ago
I am having a deadass crazy migraine right now, so cant parse it myself, but pesticide labels are massive and filled with the information you are looking for. You might need to figure out what the modes of actions specifically do for each pesticide. If you have not thoroughly read the label even for commercial pesticides, you should not begin to consider applying them.
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u/TXsweetmesquite 7d ago
The cut-and-paint method, which is what you're describing, is the most targeted herbicide application. Herbicides don't leach from roots, but triclopyr can be detrimental to waterways. I second contacting your local wetland conservation org.
Very seriously, have you considered goats? They LOVE blackberry.
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u/Level9TraumaCenter 7d ago
Section 2 here on Environmental Fate of glyphosate may be of interest.
Glyphosate is conservatively estimated to have an aquatic half-life of 7–14 days in surface waters [4]. Glyphosate is considered to have low potential for runoff due to its high affinity for soils [12]. Contrary to this conventional wisdom, glyphosate has been detected in surface waters, generally within agricultural ditches near the site of application.
But the stuff has been seen to stick around for a few years, despite a relatively short half-life under most conditions in soils.
Consider a different herbicide, depending upon your state/country of residency. This guide suggests triclopyr as an option, but notes "Ester formulations of triclopyr or imazapyr, for example, are not registered for use near water, and most glyphosate formulations cannot be used near water." (The option to an ester formulation of triclopyr would be an amine formulation, BTW.)
I've seen 30% vinegar at the hardware stores recently. Perhaps weed whacking followed by regular rouging to apply strong vinegar to all new growths that come up might be a more ecologically friendly option, at the expense of considerably more labor.
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u/Early-Falcon2121 4d ago
Vinegar is not going to kill established Blackberry. You might burn it off but it has too much energy /storage mechanisims - it will re sprout.
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u/Consistent_Aide_9394 7d ago
Glyphosate BiActive is OK to use near waterways.
Keep doing what you're doing.
Scrape and paint those stems.
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u/bingbano 7d ago
If you are going to use any pesticides they need to be aquatic formulated herbicide. In my state (Washington) these are restricted use and require licensure to use.
As bad as people think herbicides are, the majority of them are actually really harmful to aquatic life (vertebrates and invertebrates). Where you can get glyphosate on you and be fine, get it on a fish or snail, and it will mess them up. That's why we use specially formulated herbicide to treat in wetlands and aquatic zones. Sometimes invasive species are so damaging, chemical control is required.
To summarize, you need speciality herbicide to spray near water or you will seriously disrupt the animal life
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u/Zen_Bonsai 7d ago
Blackberry is easy to remove without pesticides.
Use a hedge trimmer to knock back canes, and then dig up the root balls. Maintain any suckers for a year or two
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u/victorian_vigilante 7d ago
Dig up the root balls… clearly you have never tried to remove Satan’s spaghetti
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u/Zen_Bonsai 5d ago
Not only have I dug up copious amounts of black berry root balls, I've also removed major swaths of ground layer English ivy, what we call satans spaghetti.
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u/sorensprout 7d ago
i work in conservation, and for large swaths of blackberry (which is how op described the project) can take many hours of work even with a full crew, and using chemicals can be less impactful than manual pulling, especially on slopes or banks. while i prefer to keep it to a minimum, sometimes it is worthwhile to use herbicide, but it is important to follow the label and best management practices to prevent unintentional harm. cutting the blackberry down in the fall or winter as you suggest though and then spraying in the spring when it starts sending up new sprouts is more effective though and reduces the amount of herbicide you will need to use! i also second what others are saying about double checking laws and best practices with the city, especially if spraying in a wetland.
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u/Zen_Bonsai 5d ago
I stand by the effectiveness of digging up black berry by hand, even if it takes a few days.
I didn't see the slope part and for that I concede that herbicides might be the right choice
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u/bingbano 7d ago
This is what I have been doing on land I manage. It works if you're in an area that you can return repeatedly over a year.. the method is giving native plants a change to thrive without disrupting the soil, eventually using up the blackberrys' reserves. I've been hitting the same spots for over a year, and I'm still getting regrowth. Luckily I can basically do this indefinitely, so eventually I'll win
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u/CharlesV_ 7d ago
You’ll want to contact your state’s wetland conservation agency. They’ll have recommendations for how to manage near streams and lakes. Glyphosate and triclopyr are generally safe to use when spot treating (foliar spray, basal bark, cut and treat, etc), but in wetlands there’s more even more variables.