[mab]

I've been looking online for methods of bracken control and have seen bracken rollers advertised as being very effective, and as I can probably make one to be pulled by Rosie the shetland pony (rather than paying £1000 or so for one) I'm quite keen to try.


The only problem is that i've only found three places suggesting that it's highly effective but as at least two of them are selling rollers (not sure about the third) I'm a bit sceptical of their objectivity.


Before I start buying bearings & cutting up bits of scrap to build my own, I was hoping to find some unbiased opinion as to wether they're better than scything / asulox'ing / glyphosat'ing (very steep land so tractor based methods are out).


I'm not keen on the chemical methods - glyphosate 'cos it kills everything and Asulox 'cos it's v. expensive and very nasty stuff which requires livestock to be elsewhere for an extended period.

[pgkevet]

I've also been doing a lot of reading recently and agree the info seems confusing and as much personal opinion as any verifiable fact (at least I can't find a study)

Asulox is probably too late for this year and unavailable thereafter anyway. Glyphosate cheaper and some argument that using a coarser spray at the right time and it doesn't penetrate as much through the bracken canopy as you'ld think so needn't destroy all the plants below??

Rolling, cutting, flailing, crushing or even just dragging a chain harrow all have advocates but loos like you have to do it at least three times ayear to make inroads.

My land was fairly affeted when i moved in a couple fo years ago and I can see it spreading more..probably about 8 acres of bracken in all and while my slopes are toppable by tractor it's not something I have the bottle to do myself. It's been done annually by local farmer and this year by a guy driving my own tractor but with my gear it's slow going and three times a year would be more expensive then spray.

I'm dithering on what to do and leaning towards starting with small areas using different methods to compare them - but that can be hard to asses on a small scale.

[Treud na Mara]

Wild boar are the most effective removers of bracken but they're not for everyone    But seriously, Trees for Life here in the highlands were part of a trial with wild boar to see how effective they would be and had great results. Is it possible that the more primitive pig breeds might do the same job, and have the added benefit of giving a pork crop at the end ?

[Ina]

I know that cattle are used for bracken control... They won't eradicate it, but keep it to a manageable level.

[marka]

Isnt bracken toxic to cattle though ?

[henchard]

This paper (2005)

http://www.jottercms.com/files/brackencontrol/CEBC_SR3_Bracken_control.pdf

Doesn't cover it much but states

There is no robust experimental evidence regarding the impact of rolling on bracken abundance, although the technique is being applied at a small scale on inaccessible ground unsuitable for cutting machinery. Ongoing monitoring of rolling impacts and experimentation on bracken bruising should receive funding to ensure its continuity.

So not that helpful.

 I had quite a bit of bracken on my land (which you have seen) and found Asulox (via a knapsack sprayer) fantastic if applied in the early Autumn as directed. However, it is only on limited license again for a few months and can (as far as I am aware) only be bought in 25 litre amounts. Sharing with someone else may be a way to reduce costs. I only needed a few litres when I did mine a few years ago.

[Ina]

Isnt bracken toxic to cattle though ?

They don't seem to eat it... (Bracken used to be used for bedding, too.) Their bigger feet trample the young plants more effectively than sheep's feet do.

[FiB]

I'm using 7 pigs to clear a 1.5 acre plot prior to woodland planting after Christmas.... I'll keep you posted :-) .   Certainly on an open field last time they just seemed to spread it further, but we had them later.  Maybe the rooting and exposing/ eating rhizomes at this time of year will do more damage. Here's hoping

[mab]

aha, thanks for the replies folks!


To clarify; I am planning to get pigs (and/or goats) for the very rough land which is completely overgrown - just haven't plucked up the courage yet. But I'm worrying about the bracken that seems to be creeping across the big pasture - and that's where I'm thinking a roller might work whilst still allowing the grass to be grazed - though I suppose I could use pigs on small areas then re-seed for grass after.


Henchard - I actually talked to my neighbour about Asulox today - he may be buying some this year (bracken is still growing here poss. due to altitude) and he will sell/give me a bit    - still doesn't solve the problem of where to put the animals for the duration though.


I'll be interested in how your pigs get on FiB - I was going to try them on the rough as they probably can't make it any worse (gorse/bracken/bramble to over head height).

[henchard]

Henchard - I actually talked to my neighbour about Asulox today - he may be buying some this year (bracken is still growing here poss. due to altitude) and he will sell/give me a bit    - still doesn't solve the problem of where to put the animals for the duration though.

Can't you temporarily fence them in an unaffected area for 2 weeks? The label on Asulox says

DO NOT cut the bracken or admit livestock for at least 14 days after spraying and preferably leave it undisturbed until late autumn. This is to allow adequate translocation of ASULOX within the bracken plant

[mab]

oh, I'd forgotten the '14days' bit and vaguely remembered the '(preferably) leave undisturbed 'til late autumn' bit - which in my mind was quite a long time.


Well if my neighbour gets some I'll see how I get on - though I'm still at the mercy of the welsh weather and how much I can get done with a knapsack sprayer in the time window.


I still may make a bracken roller though as it would be a good way to exercise Rosie - But I may take my time and try and gather all the bits I need for free.


thx

[regen]

Hi MAB,

A good powerful strimmer with a disc blade can cover quite a lot of ground in a morning - I have recently cut about an acre of rosebay willow herb in a couple of hours.

i would strim the light encroaching growth and use Rosie pulling a log to flatten the heavier growth.

My neigbours have pretty much eradicated it on a couple of acres of woodland by cutting twicw each year for 2 years  followed by goats.

Regen

[Steph Hen]

I thought the squashing was meant to be done in spring when the new fronds are still green and furled? Maybe wrong.

[pgkevet]

I know I ovethink stuff..and am generally cynical. I don't mean to be disrespectful either BUT:

The general findings from my reading are indeed to apply glyphosate or crush at the rapid growth phase when the fronds are just uncurling. It's still unclear to me how much uncurling? The suggestion that this takes all the energy out of the plant and weakens it sounds good until you remmeber quite how thick and deep those bracken roots are..let's face it just cutting docks hardly gets rid of them and their tap root system is smaller. I can see that repeated cuttign ight finally make inroads but I'd guess a minimum of three cuts per year and several years...?

Stories of success may well be just fortuitous or differng, shallower soil conditions. Bracken roots can be a metre below ground in deep soil. (I said I'm cynical )  Success in woodland may not be due to the cutting but juts due to the growth of the woodland canopy and light deprivation - indeed planting trees is one form of suggested control.

Raking up roots..livestock or ploughing -is supposedly more to do with timing and winter frost on exposed roots than the mechanics...

Perhaps a better answer would be to turn an issue into a benefit - if there is a use for bracken as a crop? Biofuels, bedding , thatch, mulch etc

[Ina]

Perhaps a better answer would be to turn an issue into a benefit - if there is a use for bracken as a crop? Biofuels, bedding , thatch, mulch etc

I think bracken wasn't so much of a problem in earlier days exactly because of that - it was used. But these days you'll hardly find anybody willing to go out there and spend days or weeks cutting bracken by hand on those steep slopes where it is the worst problem. (Another point was that there was more cattle on the land before the clearances and the increase of sheep...)