Camphor trees sprouting out everywhere

[LightningLoader]

Have a row of camphor trees that got torn up pretty badly by the hurricanes last summer. Previous owner hacked off damaged limbs and now the trunks and the bases of the trees are sprouting/shooting out all over the place. Cut them off and they just re-sprout. What can I do to stop this nonsense? I know with small citrus trees they wrap the bases to keep light away from root stocks so that they don't sprout, but how do you keep light off an entire trunk?

 

[Treeman14]

The trees are just trying to replace all that lost food production in the form of new leaves. Let them grow for 3 seasons, then cut of the ones you don't want to keep. Cutting them off before they can replenish energy reserves will add stress to an already stressed system.

 

[simopimo]

It's amazing that people in the US want to keep camphor laurel trees... in some parts of the world they are a noxious weed! Like here...

 

[Ekka]

It's amazing that people in the US want to keep camphor laurel trees... in some parts of the world they are a noxious weed! Like here...

Yeah, I agree but then again, geographics and location influence trees. In America they call our Paperbarks and Casuarina's weeds! Apparently the Everglades are being over run by Paperbarks and even effecting wildlife and the coastal areas of California are turning into Casuarina monoculture.

 

[LightningLoader]

Pest Trees

The camphor trees don't seem to be too invasive here in FL, but the melaluca, which is the paper bark that you speak of is terrible. I knew someone who had a hunting camp down in the Glades that the government decided to confiscate when they found oil. The guy was so mad that the government was taking his property that he tossed a huge handful of melaluca seeds out there and they said that the trees completely took over the camp in the year before they were ordered to leave.