Thanks DD, I use a lot of roundup on honeysuckle, buck thorn and beech. This will definitely help with the "bookkeeping".

They do eat them, but when I met with our local bioligists for an invasive removal grant, they told me something interesting. Due to a heavy-duty laxative in the berries, a bird will excrete the seed in about 8 minutes. So, they eat, fly a little ways from the tree, and "bombs away". Another tree is possibly seeded.

Also, if you use the round-up method of honeysuckle removal, need to do it in the fall. The plant is drawing all the nutrients it can into it's roots at that time. Cut, spray round up on the stump, and let it be. I've been using a choker chain and a tractor to remove bush in the spring/summer, roots, and all. They cannot re-seed from that.

Just my thoughts.

I try to pull when I can or grind the stump. Some you can't do this way, so spray away.

Right now is the perfect time of year to pull honeysuckle in my opinion

They can eat the smaller plants, but not the larger berry bearing ones.

If you scrape the bark off a small section of the larger plants and using a brush, paint it with an undiluted herbicide like Crossbow. That will kill the plant. Or you can cut the plant down and paint the stump with the same thing.

If you want to try a non herbicide method for 2" plus buckthorn(I grub out smaller with a mattock) just cut off a few inches above ground and zip tie or wire a square of Hv BLACK poly over stump. Third year I have done it and it have killed and prevented sprouting on all. Except one that came off for some reason. Developed by an Arbor specialist I read online. I don't like to use chems if I can help it.

That sounds like a pretty smart idea. I'll have to try it. I'd rather not use chemicals either. Thanks.

Great idea Drake, I'll give that a try myself. Thanks!

Not my idea. Just passing on info that has been working from an expert researching buckthorn control. As I yearly patrol my land now for invading buckthorn it has not been hard to recover poly/zip ties after a couple of seasons having killed what I call mother trees(larger buckthorn that are producing seed). Now that I have got them killed I am doing a 6 year rotation of 20 aceres a year of my 120. I patrol late fall as buckthorn is one of the last to drop it's leaves and is pretty easy to spot at a good distance, still bright green. Saplings are about man high and not hard to just pull out(usually very shallow roots in soft soil) or with a grub or two with a small mattocks. Sadly another yearly chore to control but the alternative is loosing the understory and stand regeneration.

I have some Tartan honey suckle but it is not proving invasive.

Very well stated. 100% correct. Unfortunately most people around here do nothing about it.

I've been trying to focus on the ones w/ berries. Those berries that aren't yet purple hopefully won't become viable if I can kill the buckthorn trees asap.

It's getting to be that time of year when buckthorn is easier to spot

yes

I just loaded up a Gatorade Squirt Bottle with Garlon 4.

Garlon 4 was mentioned by OP. It and the other triclopyr herbicides are extremely effective against woody brush and trees. Another option it gives you is basal bark treatment. Instead of water, use diesel fuel with 4 oz/gallon. For trees up to about 8 in, wet the bottom 18 in. Late summer and fall is best. I know diesel is expensive, but think of how much it would take to spray all leaves of a tree. I have been using triclopyr herbicides to clear an infestation of trifoliate orange on my farms

That's what I use too.

thanks going to try the diesel

The problem with goats is that they eat off the smaller plants OK, but they come back the following year. I spray all the emerging plants with diluted Crossbow.
The larger plants I cut off and paint the stumps with undiluted Crossbow.

Sheep aren't the answer for buckthorn or honeysuckle.