Want to dig up a juniper...
#1
04-21-05, 08:26 AM
Want to dig up a juniper...
Hello, I was wondering how to dig up a juniper? The juniper covers about a 6sq./ft of an area and is about a foot in height. I'm guessing this means it has been planted for a long time. I've tried just to dig it out, but the roots seem to go very deep, the juniper also seems to have a lot of roots too. Do I need to kill the juniper first? And if so, how do I kill it? Is there a certain type of tool I could use to dig it out other than a spade? 
Thanks for your help!!
Thanks for your help!!
#2
04-22-05, 09:06 AM
Hah. I was just coming to ask a similar question.
We moved into our first house which has junipers in the front yard. Sounds like mine are older than yours.
We have an "L" shape of juniper bushes running the length of the driveway (~20 feet?), and the length of the path (~8 feet). They're ~2-3 feet tall and at least SIX feet wide.
Last night, I started at a corner and went to town using a hedge trimmer (top parts), shears (middle parts) and small folding garden saw for the base/roots.
Basically, the whole mess is so snarled underneath that in order for me to get anywhere near the 'main' trunks, we have to demolish the bush first and then dig out the stump.
The wierd thing was, you'd find one 'branch', cut it off at the base of the root, start pulling, and find it had grown 6-8 FEET through the rest of the bushes to pop out the other side.
I took out 3 stumps, each taking out maybe a 3'x3' section of bush. This filled out 96 gallon yardwaste container.
Honestly, If there is a better way, I'd love to hear it.
Our other issue is dealing with the massive bio-mass left over from these bushes. We have a 96 gallon container that gets picked up once every two weeks. At this rate it will be december before we can get rid of all of it.
We moved into our first house which has junipers in the front yard. Sounds like mine are older than yours.
We have an "L" shape of juniper bushes running the length of the driveway (~20 feet?), and the length of the path (~8 feet). They're ~2-3 feet tall and at least SIX feet wide.
Last night, I started at a corner and went to town using a hedge trimmer (top parts), shears (middle parts) and small folding garden saw for the base/roots.
Basically, the whole mess is so snarled underneath that in order for me to get anywhere near the 'main' trunks, we have to demolish the bush first and then dig out the stump.
The wierd thing was, you'd find one 'branch', cut it off at the base of the root, start pulling, and find it had grown 6-8 FEET through the rest of the bushes to pop out the other side.
I took out 3 stumps, each taking out maybe a 3'x3' section of bush. This filled out 96 gallon yardwaste container.
Honestly, If there is a better way, I'd love to hear it.
Our other issue is dealing with the massive bio-mass left over from these bushes. We have a 96 gallon container that gets picked up once every two weeks. At this rate it will be december before we can get rid of all of it.
#3
04-22-05, 03:25 PM
When I want to be rid of a plant such as this, I cut the plant down to the ground and dig up as much of the root ball as I can. There is a limit as to how far to chase all the small roots. I would not disturb other plantings to remove them. Mulch the area well and pull any sprouts or spray them with RoundUp to kill what remains.
