Machete Man is a specialized service that cuts invasive plants away from trees and neighboring fences or walls particularly where these vines or shrubs have become established over long periods of time. The removal of such long-term infestations is particularly challenging for unskilled and inexperienced workers to carry our efficiently and without damaging the trees and secondary succession (see Kricher & Morrison, 1988. In the case of English Ivy, for example, an infestation over many years results in the trunk of the supporting tree becoming almost completely encased in a solid, curved plate of woody, vine material that requires very skillful hard work to remove without damage to the tree.
The fees charged for Machete Man services all go to help support the School’s conservation activities so there is a particularly meaningful synergy established: By saving trees from the threats posed by invasive plant species, support is obtained to increase knowledge about, and awareness of, the significance of forest conservation in general.
The cleaned bole of an oak contrasts with the ivy-infested trees in the background; private garden in the Fernbank forest.
A critical element of this service is that the work is carried out with both ecological and esthetic sensitivity.
All invasive plant material is removed from the bole of the tree up to a height of about 9 ft. so that the natural beauty of the tree is revealed. This contrasts with the way that herbicidal sprays are used to kill the vines where the dead vine material remains on the tree at its most conspicuous level;