I cut down some holly bushes and painted the cuts with Triclopyr. I want to put some fruit trees in the area. I know the Triclopyr will travel throughout the root system and stay in the roots until they basically rot away, but will the surrounding soil be unsuitable for fruit trees for a certain amount of time? I have some citrus and blueberries I want to put in the ground sooner than later, the pots just dry out so fast.

I am pretty sure I am safe, but I want to know if anyone has experience with it.

2 ...

Report Post

Posted by BiggerBear

Redbone Country

Member since Sep 2011

3146 posts

Posted on 9/11/25 at 8:43 am to armsdealer

I cannot answer your question, but the warnings that I have read seem to all relate to root uptake of triclopyr that is sprayed on the soil and not uptake after decomposition of roots of treated plants. The half-life of triclopyr in soil is 30-90 days according to Google for what that's worth. So the amounts remaining in soil, depending on how much gets into the soil, will diminish by a factor of 10 in 6 months to a year depending on things like soil temp and moisture levels - lasting longer in dryer, cooler soil.

0 ...

Report Post

Posted by DIGGY

Member since Nov 2012

1918 posts

Posted on 9/12/25 at 9:31 am to armsdealer

Ester formulations tend to hang around longer than amines. Can get some root exudation into surrounding soil or wash off of treated stump with heavy rainfall. If the triclopyr was not diluted when you applied potentially has a pretty good dose. It breaks down microbial so warmer temps, good soil aeration, and good soil moisture conditions help speed of breakdown. Tilling soil prob help aerate it. Sunlight plays a role in its breakdown as well. So anything to promote microbial activity will hasten its breakdown. Probably best to wait every bit of 90 days or longer given the rate used for the stump treatment just to be safe.

Page 1