Controls for the Virginia Creeper

Cultural Control

• Virginia creeper is a perennial vine, but it can be controlled by digging if there are only a few vines with which to contend. Regularly mowing small patches can weaken young plants until they die. When digging, be sure to get all of the root and vine or new plants may spring from the shattered fragments.

Folicular Treatment

• Perhaps the easiest way to treat vines like Virginia creeper is to apply an herbicide to its leaves. Spray until the leaves are wet, but do not spray so much that the herbicide drips onto the ground or you may kill grass and plants below. Folicular herbicide can also be applied using sponges or brushes. Glyphosate and triclopyr are effective when applied to Virginia creeper in late August or September before a frost occurs.

Basal Bark Treatment

• Oil soluble herbicides can be applied to woody stems less than 6 inches in diameter. This method is faster than cutting down Virginia creeper, but will leave standing dead brush that should be dealt with once it has dried out. Triclopyr and imazapyr are effective when applied in this manner.

Preventing Resprouting

• It is a good idea to apply an herbicide to prevent new sprouts from emerging from the stump when cutting Virginia creeper. This vine is very persistent, but can be treated with several different herbicides to discourage reemergence. Picloram and imazapyr are very successful when used for this purpose. Triclopyr and glyphosate also show some effectiveness at preventing new sprouts.