How to Kill Wild Hedges

Spray the wild hedge with a broad-spectrum herbicide. This is sufficient for most hedge shrubbery. Spray evenly according to the specific product's guidelines, coating the entire hedge. For best results, apply during sunny weather when rain and excessive dew will not dilute the herbicide solution.

Cut down the wild hedge if it is especially large, tangled or overgrown and cannot be easily sprayed with herbicide. Use pruning shears, handsaws or a chainsaw to cut the branches away from the wild hedge plant's main trunk. Clear away the removed branches. Cut down the trunk to a height of 1 foot above the ground.

Apply a stump killer to the trunk to prevent the wild hedge from growing back from the stump or its underground root network. This will kill even pervasive, aggressive-growing wild plants. Cover the entire surface of the exposed trunk.

Apply rock salt around the base of each hedge plant, covering the soil evenly in a 2- to 3-foot circumference around the trunk. Typically, 1/2 lb. of salt is sufficient for each square foot of soil. The salt will slowly kill the hedge. However, don't salt the ground if you intend to plant anything else in that location.