Anonymous wrote:When I was a kid, we called these sumac trees. Tree of heaven is orwellian.

It's a different kind of tree.

I might pay for a landscaper, or even just a general laborer, to come dig it out. I get that it's on public land, but if you're motivated to truly remove it, the city probably won't do that.

Have you reached out to Casey Trees (assuming you're in DC)? They might do it, or recommend a service.

Anonymous wrote:When I was a kid, we called these sumac trees. Tree of heaven is orwellian.

Sumacs and ToH look similar but are not the same.

Anonymous wrote:You have to swab the stump with roundup very soon after cutting it down. Keep repeating whenever you see new sprouts.

That method is ineffective against ToH. This is the correct protocol:

https://extension.psu.edu/tree-of-heaven-control-strategies

When I was a kid, we called these sumac trees. Tree of heaven is orwellian.

You have to swab the stump with roundup very soon after cutting it down. Keep repeating whenever you see new sprouts.

TOH needs a specific protocol to be killed and chopping it down before it has been killed through chemicals (in the fall) is going to create further problems. I would not call it in if all they're doing is cutting it down.

So I’m aware that we can submit a 311 request for removal of Tree of Heaven if it’s in a public space, not private property. I’ve done this a couple of times before and to their credit, they were responsive and someone came within 24 hours.

But now what I’ve noticed is that they are basically chopping it to a stump but not fully removing. This just makes it fight back and aggressively put out root suckers that will sprout up even more seedlings nearby.

Has anyone ever seen them FULLY take the plant out and/or kill it by other means?

I’m now seeing one has grown at the base of a large maple in a tree box out front. I’m hesitant to call in 311 again m, lest they chop it and then it decides to figure out a way to sprout in our front garden just a few feet away … which is a native pollinator garden.

Thoughts? Ideas? And yes … I’ve all seen lantern fly nymphs out front due to this. Previously I only saw them in the back alley side and only briefly; they didn’t stick around after we got rid of a Tree of Heaven back there.