When we first moved into our house a vine attached to our wood shed from our neighbors fence and before you could snap your fingers it was huge and out of control. We were so busy with remodeling that we just let it go. In the heat of the summer it bloomed beautiful flowers and yep looked like trumpets. We noticed hummingbirds enjoyed the flowers. We loved the thought of these birds hanging around. In the Fall they get giants seed pods like bananas.
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| This growth is just from this season! |
If we only knew the destruction and relentlessness of this classified weed. We started hacking at it in the Fall. It pulled the paint off our shed and got up underneath each wood board on the siding. It intertwined through the neighbor's chain link fence. It's woody branches/trunk are tough and 2-4 inches wide. It was hours of work cutting it back and putting in a burn pile. We tried to be so careful to not get any pieces on our grass.
The picture above is our neighbor's fence this year. This weed is back but, luckily not on our shed. It took us 4 years of cutting it off our shed to stop it however the fence is so close I am sure it will be back.
I have read to use a weed killer and it may take a couple applications. I learned from working at a large lawn company there are some weeds that just need dug up and removed. However if seedlings fall you will still have a mess.
I'm shocked to find this vine for sale online. Some weeds are pretty flowering native plants however the trumpet vine is down right destructive. I have read recommendations on planting in sandy poor soil where nothing grows and control it with something like a trellis. Good luck! Those seeds hit the wind and you are in trouble!!!
If you see this at a community park let your township know about it. It will take over anything in it's path.
