Thanks to our local Conservation Partnership Officers, Marc Russell and Alan Wynn, we were recently introduced to a very useful tool – the Tree Popper. The jaws of the Tree Popper clamp the weed at the base of the stem, then using the lever principle they pull the whole plant out of the ground, roots and all. Amazing! They are ideal for removing unwanted plants whose roots have developed past the point of where they can be hand-pulled without risking a hernia.
This simple, yet effective one-person tool comes in three sizes and is designed to be an alternative to stem scrape and cut-poisoning methods of controlling woody weeds.
- Small – weighing 2.5kgs is able to remove plants with a stem diameter of 5-20mm.
- Medium – weighing 5kgs can remove plants with a stem diameter up to 40mm.
- Large – weighing a hefty 7.5kgs (you’ll need good muscles to use this one) can remove plants with a stem diameter up to 60mm. It is claimed that the large Tree Popper has the equivalent pulling power of 10 times the weight of the user.
We used the small and medium Tree Poppers to concentrate on the removal of Night Jessamine (Cestrum nocturnum), Chinese Celtis (Celtis sinensis), Golden
Trumpet (Handroanthus chrysotrichus), Polka Dot (Hypoestes phyllostachya) and Camphor Laurel (Cinnamomum camphora).
Check with your local Land for Wildlife Officer to see what tools are available to borrow which could assist you with some of those more difficult jobs on your property.
Image top L-R: Land for Wildlife members Linda Scharf, Jill Cutting and Peter Scharf with their small and medium sized Tree Poppers.
Jill Cutting
Land for Wildlife member
Witta, Sunshine Coast