Tallows & Wisteria

I'm not an expert on plants....just love to grow them. I can say that around here, Chinese Tallow trees have taken over the beautiful pasture next to my house and blocked my view. I'm constantly pulling up seedlings in my yard. The horses are having a hard time getting to my homemade horse fast food window because of their dense growth. I would like to hop the fence and chop them all down but it's not my property. The pasture is filled with an old pecan orchard. Soon, we will no longer see pecan seedlings....only tallows.

Additionally, my neighbors' wisteria, which I find stunning when in bloom, is starting to pop up in my yard as well and is ruining our fence. I've seen the wisteria become invasive up in the Hunstville area and I hope all gardeners who grow it will keep it in check. It's a beautiful plant but when allowed to run amuck it can cause damage.

I know what you mean about the tallows, they are a major pest here in south Alabama and north Florida. I have cut down and girdled at least a hundred on my property, along with chinese privet. I see them growing in peoples yards and it makes me sick. I wished I could stop the car and go in their yard and cut them down. But most people around here don't even know what they are, other than "popcorn" trees. If you could print out a sheet off of the internet and take it to the landowner, he/she may give you permission to cut some of them down. Just explain that it is affecting you because of all of the seedlings on your property. As far as wisteria goes, I have the same problem with it coming over my fence from my neighbors property. You may not can cross that fence but if you really pump up that sprayer, it will shoot about 15ft. LOL Use brush-b-gone, it works best for that. More than likely it is Asian wisteria that is causing the problems. If you do really like wisteria and want some, try the native variety. It is sometimes sold under the name "Amythyst Falls". It is more behaved, just don't plant it next to the Asian variety or you may get them mixed up.

This message was edited Jun 13, 2006 10:05 AM