" wrote in message ...
When an area becomes really overgrown (and includes invasives like
Ailanthus and Oriental Bittersweet) is there any real remedy except to
tear it up with a backhoe and start from scratch?

I have an area of my yard that is totally overgrown in yukka
plants,periwinkl, Ailanthus, Oriental Bittersweet, and Wysteria (and a
few others) and I just don't know what to do with it. I haven't yet
acquired the landscaping "vision". Any ideas?

-Chess

I can't think that way. I would go about with a paint brush and a
bottle of Roundup, and start to selectively kill the stuff I am sure I
don't want (by painting leaves). After three weeks pull dead plants,
see what picture emerges, kill a few more, see if it improves,
consider a trellis for wisteria in the background, etc. I'd suppose a
periwinkle cover could be desirable, as would some of the best
specimens of yucca or wisteria, depending on size and location. They
are there, free of charge and healthy, well adapted to the site, so
why waste them.