# How to cut tree branches and get rid of Boston Ivy



## debodun (Jul 11, 2019)

I have a lot of maple and walnut trees on my property. They grow fast and some branches are now rubbing on the buildings and even parts of the garage roof. They are just high enough so I can't reach them with my long-handled pruning shears and I am not comfortable carrying sharp objects up on a ladder that is sitting on soft ground. Also, there is a Boston ivy that is taking over the south side of the house (see photo). Tree guys want a fortune to do work. Any suggestions?


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## RadishRose (Jul 11, 2019)

That ivy is going to or already has, caused damage to you house. It's so huge that I wouldn't dream of doing anything without a professional. Personally I fear poisons.


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## retiredtraveler (Jul 13, 2019)

debodun said:


> ..... They are just high enough so I can't reach them with my long-handled pruning shears and I am not comfortable carrying sharp objects up on a ladder that is sitting on soft ground..... Tree guys want a fortune to do work. Any suggestions?


I have a pruning saw that extends to about 8 feet. I use it all the time. You would not have to go very far up on a ladder with that. If you're really concerned, and intend to do a lot of pruning, on a regular basis, as I do, you'll want an adjustable ladder.


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## Ronni (Jul 13, 2019)

@treeguy64 might be able to give you some insight. Hopefully he’ll see this.


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## treeguy64 (Jul 13, 2019)

Ronni said:


> @treeguy64 might be able to give you some insight. Hopefully he’ll see this.



Yes, and treeguy64 says: Hire a professional, and pay the price. From the picture, it appears you have let everything grow, unchecked, for far too long.

Every month, I get fatality reports from one of my professional organizations. There are always homeowners on those reports who thought they could save some money by doing it themselves.

Trust me, tenacious vine removals are a big job. If allowed to stay, your walls will, in fact, be damaged.

Tree pruning, done incorrectly, can start your trees on a downward mortality spiral. I see it all the time, where homeowners tried to save money,  and ended up totally screwing up their trees.

Again, hire a professional. The work may be expensive, but after it's done, regular maintenance will keep things in great shape, and not cost that much.

Good luck!

Certified Arborist, TRAQ, ISA.


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## treeguy64 (Jul 13, 2019)

retiredtraveler said:


> I have a pruning saw that extends to about 8 feet. I use it all the time. You would not have to go very far up on a ladder with that. If you're really concerned, and intend to do a lot of pruning, on a regular basis, as I do, you'll want an adjustable ladder.



NEVER use a pole saw on a ladder, UNLESS you're wearing a harness, proper PPE, and tied in, above! Every month, I read the fatality reports from TCIA. Homeowner deaths frequently involve people falling from ladders while attempting to saw limbs. The advice from rt is absolutely incorrect. DON'T DO IT!


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## retiredtraveler (Jul 13, 2019)

Might be good advice for others --- been doing it a long time. I have a 'little giant' type of ladder which is stable as heck, and I don't go more than halfway up on it, meaning I'm leaning on the ladder with most of my body so I don't fall off. I would never use a 'conventional' ladder to do work on trees.
  I don't use a ladder with a chain saw, however. I have been pruning, cutting, splitting, and stacking wood on my lot for 40 years --- a lot of experience.


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## Judycat (Jul 13, 2019)

Good Lord your house literally looks just like mine. I have English Ivy doing that. What I did was, in the fall, I cut the vine stalks off at the bottom, they died all the way up during the winter. Easier, for me, to remove that way. Still have to climb a ladder and pull them off though. You'll have to contend with dead leaves on your house until you do, not attractive, but they quit growing anyway. I'm doing mine in sections while keeping the live vines from replacing the ones I pulled off. Mine grew from one plant I planted to cover some lousy looking lawn in the back.


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## debodun (Jul 13, 2019)

Yes, I don't want to cut the trunk now or I'll have dead leaves all over. I was going to wait until fall. I have a different type of vine growing on the other side of the house (I think it's Virginia creeper) and last fall I cut the stems near the ground, but they were right back up this spring. I don't like to use weed killers because of the wild and domestic animals that wander around.


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## treeguy64 (Jul 13, 2019)

retiredtraveler said:


> Might be good advice for others --- been doing it a long time. I have a 'little giant' type of ladder which is stable as heck, and I don't go more than halfway up on it, meaning I'm leaning on the ladder with most of my body so I don't fall off. I would never use a 'conventional' ladder to do work on trees.
> I don't use a ladder with a chain saw, however. I have been pruning, cutting, splitting, and stacking wood on my lot for 40 years --- a lot of experience.



Lol! Undoubtedly, the famous last words of many whose fatality reports I read, monthly. You should NEVER trim trees on a ladder, unless you are tied in above, wearing a harness and proper PPE. A fall from only ten feet can result in a fatality, if conditions are just right/wrong.

I've been in the trees for, about, forty years. You are a lucky guy, if you're trimming while on a ladder, and have no injury stories to tell. It only takes one branch, with holding wood that doesn't release as expected, to sweep back, and either sweep you off your ladder, or knock your ladder out from under you. Get a harness, a helmet, a climbing line, and learn how to use them all. Stay safe!

The above is, in fact, good advice for others and..... for YOU!


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## debodun (Jul 13, 2019)

When I have to clean out my rain gutters in the fall, I climb out on the porch roof, lay on my stomach and scoot along the eaves scooping the gutters as I go.  My elbows inevitably get scraped on the rough asphant shingles. When I tell people this, they are aghast. They ask why I don't use a ladder. I think I am more likely to fall off a ladder than fall of the roof laying down on it. Plus I don't have to climb up, climb down, move the ladder, climb up, etc, etc. etc.


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## treeguy64 (Jul 13, 2019)

debodun said:


> Yes, I don't want to cut the trunk now or I'll have dead leaves all over. I was going to wait until fall. I have a different type of vine growing on the other side of the house (I think it's Virginia creeper) and last fall I cut the stems near the ground, but they were right back up this spring. I don't like to use weed killers because of the wild and domestic animals that wander around.



Huh? When you cut the vines at the ground, everything above dies. You then get two, or three, six foot fiberglass pole sections, put a snap-in hook at one end, and pull the vines down. Of course they'll be "right back up in the spring," unless you get all of the roots out. Nonetheless, controlling the new sprouts is as easy as using a weed eater. No big deal.


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## RadishRose (Jul 13, 2019)

debodun said:


> When I have to clean out my rain gutters in the fall, I climb out on the porch roof, lay on my stomach and scoot along the eaves scooping the gutters as I go.  My elbows inevitably get scraped on the rough asphant shingles. When I tell people this, they are aghast. They ask why I don't use a ladder. I think I am more likely to fall off a ladder than fall of the roof laying down on it. Plus I don't have to climb up, climb down, move the ladder, climb up, etc, etc. etc.


I'd rather pay @treeguy64 , then go out to lunch with my friends!


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## treeguy64 (Jul 13, 2019)

RadishRose said:


> I'd rather pay @treeguy64 , then go out to lunch with my friends!


I'll take the gig!


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## Lakeland living (Jul 13, 2019)

I will never again I have now seen it all. Last week saw someone cut a branch down when he was under it.  
Oh, wellllll


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## Judycat (Jul 13, 2019)

debodun said:


> Yes, I don't want to cut the trunk now or I'll have dead leaves all over. I was going to wait until fall. I have a different type of vine growing on the other side of the house (I think it's Virginia creeper) and last fall I cut the stems near the ground, but they were right back up this spring. I don't like to use weed killers because of the wild and domestic animals that wander around.


Ugh, Virginia creeper is the worst. I have that on my garage. It's popping up everywhere in the garden too. It gives me a rash if I touch it. #&*%@°! stuff.


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## Judycat (Jul 13, 2019)

Treeguy I have to work with what I have. I use a cultivating rake to pull them down but still need a ladder. I like the thrill of climbing up high though.


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## treeguy64 (Jul 13, 2019)

Judycat said:


> Treeguy I have to work with what I have. I use a cultivating rake to pull them down but still need a ladder. I like the thrill of climbing up high though.



I, also, "like the thrill of climbing up high," but I do so the correct way, wearing a harness, helmet, eye protection, boots and gloves. I never work from a ladder unless I am connected to a rope that is placed above me, in the tree. I also secure the top of the ladder with a rope and friction rope grab. 

Do it right, or don't do it, at all!


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## Judycat (Jul 13, 2019)

There's no risk in that.


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## treeguy64 (Jul 14, 2019)

Judycat said:


> There's no risk in that.



No idea what the above is referring to.


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## Judycat (Jul 14, 2019)

That's OK treeguy


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## treeguy64 (Jul 14, 2019)

Judycat said:


> That's OK treeguy


Gee, I was hoping you'd enlighten me. Seriously.


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## Judycat (Jul 14, 2019)

Of course you did. But no. That's OK.


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## treeguy64 (Jul 14, 2019)

Judycat said:


> Of course you did. But no. That's OK.



Lol! Very odd, but OK, I guess.........


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## Marie5656 (Jul 14, 2019)

*I agree with what Radish Rose said about damage to your house.  Had a tree on the on the back corner of my house, that had branches rubbing on my roof.  Wore out a spot, causing damage to the roof (ending up replacing the whole roof, it was time anyway) plus it leaked into my house and ruined one of my inside ceilings.  Had to replace part of the ceiling too,
Seems like you may have more damage. Hard to tell, is your home stone, brick or wood?  I know you have posted pictures of the house before, but I do not remember.*


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## debodun (Jul 15, 2019)

Marie5656 said:


> * is your home stone, brick or wood?  *


The house is brick, the garage is wood frame with siding over particle board. Both have asphalt shingles.


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## debodun (Nov 29, 2019)

I went out this morning with my pruning shears and cut the vines near the ground where I saw the stems coming up. Now, what to do with the dead vines sticking on the house. It's a tangle of wisteria and Boston ivy. They will probably grow back next summer anyway.


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## Keesha (Nov 29, 2019)

Pour boiling hot water on their roots. 
Then pour vinegar over them with some salt and a few drops of dish soap. If you don’t get the roots first then all the work of trying to get them off your house will be wasted.


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## debodun (Nov 29, 2019)

The stems are all along that side of the house - that would be a lot of boiling water and salt to put on them.


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## Keesha (Nov 29, 2019)

debodun said:


> The stems are all along that side of the house - that would be a lot of boiling water and salt to put on them.


That’s right but it’s the cheapest and the safest way. Getting out and doing all that pruning would be good exercise to though. What I’d do if i were you is prune them right down if you don’t want them and as you do each section pour boiling water on them. 
You might not get the entire side done this season but you can continue next spring.


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## Catlady (Nov 29, 2019)

When you use salt, it's not the table kind of salt, get the rock salt.  If you spread the salt now, with all the winter rain and such coming, the roots might be dead or almost dead by spring.  Just get some rock salt and spread them along the root area and see how that works.


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## Keesha (Nov 29, 2019)

Catlady said:


> When you use salt, it's not the table kind of salt, get the rock salt.  If you spread the salt now, with all the winter rain and such coming, the roots might be dead or almost dead by spring.  Just get some rock salt and spread them along the root area and see how that works.


Even better idea.


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## debodun (Nov 30, 2019)

Thanks for the tips.


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