bush removal----roots

[PETER R]

hi guys I had dug up 3 small ish bushes to the side of my driveway , going to replace the membrane and put down new stones , but the roots on these bushes are a total pita , they are so long and make it hard to dig , so before I put down the weed control is it worth putting anything down on these roots or will they just die off , if they arnt already dead

[arco_iris]

Probably not answering your question exactly, I have just done a similar job, well two-thirds way through. I don't in fact know what might happen to the roots, but I used a (sharpened*) spade to dig over the ground, dropping it from height, often & repeatedly, so that the "long pita roots" got chopped into small pieces. Then buried.

* I sharpened the spade edge with an angle grinder.

(Personally I find membrane a waste of IDKW, I prefer regular applications of weedkiller on gravelled areas).

[boxedin]

I removed quite a few medium size trees (ash, privet, cherry, apple) and bushes on the allotment the bushes were mostly rose or old fruit bushes I used a grubbing mattock (like a pick axe) to smash through the roots or its what it is designed for I always take the roots out because the take forever to rot in the soil so if you want to cultivate straight away they come out and are chopped through with the mattock,a cheap pair of secateurs or loppers for bigger stuff. Sometimes the roots are so thick they have to be sawn through. They are usually pretty dry so will burn quick and the ash put back on the soil as a high potassium fertiliser.

https://www.machinemart.co.uk/p/grubbin ... -head-5lb/
https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profile?PID=621

[PETER R]

ok thanks ive got out as much as I can atm surface is level , but if say you see one sticking up about a cm in size and pull it , it runs for about 3 ft before breaking off , so was thinking putting something in there like a killer just to see them off kind of thing

[boxedin]

You could paint the end with stump killer or similar but shouldnt need to really. I would just dig out like you have so the sharp roots don't punch through the weed membrane it is unlikely to regenerate, especially under weed control membrane. It depends on what plants you dug out as to whether they can regenerate from parts of root

[PETER R]

ok thank you , ive finished all the digging , not something id want to do again , I have cut back all the roots I can see , membrane will be here either tomorrow or Thursday , ill fit that then order the stones. thanks for the replies guys

peter