How to Kill a Chinaberry Tree

The chinaberry tree (Melia azedarach), also referred to as bead tree, pride of India, and Persian lilac, is a native of China, southern India, and the Himalayas. The short-lived, deciduous tree has a fast growth rate, achieving a height of about 50 feet with up to a 20-foot spread. The reddish-brown bark gets fissures with age. Chinaberry blooms are about an inch long, purple, star shaped, and fragrant. They grow as drooping panicles. Clusters of small, yellow fruit follow the flowers, and stay on the tree even after leaf fall. If you need to get rid of unwanted chinaberry trees in the landscape, the best way is to kill the tree with herbicide, recommends the Ohio State University Extension.

Glyphosate
Ax
Stump grinder

Instructions

- 1
  Choose any herbicide with the active ingredient glyphosate for killing an unwanted tree, suggests the Washington State University Extension. Select an undiluted, water-soluble formula over an ester or oil-soluble formula for better efficacy.
- 2
  Use a sharp ax to cut down the tree to a 2- to 3-foot stump. Make the stump surface smooth and level to keep the herbicide from dripping off. The best time to use glyphosate is in August and September.
- 3
  Spray the entire surface of the stump, if the diameter is 3 inches or less. If the stump diameter is over 3 inches, spray the chemical only on the 2 to 3 inches right next to the bark, because the inner heartwood on larger trees is already dead.
- 4
  Repeat application after seven to 10 days. Avoid using glyphosate on very hot days or on trees suffering from severe drought stress. The cambial tissue will move the chemical into the tree roots and gradually kill it entirely.
- 5
  Use a stump grinder to grind the stump to a depth of about a foot below the ground. Grinding is the recommended method of stump removal in urban settings, cites the University of Minnesota Extension.

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