Article: If you do plan to use herbicide on the tree, then the hack and squirt method can be just as effective as the girdling method with even less work involved. The hack and squirt method uses precise chops to coat with herbicide instead of an entire band around the whole tree. Start by getting an axe or a hatchet. The hack and squirt method requires fewer cuts than girdling, but you will still use the same herbicides. Read the entire label on the herbicide to figure out how much to make. Mix the herbicide in a spray bottle before you begin cutting.  Commonly available, effective herbicides include glyphosate (Roundup or Killzall) and triclopyr (Garlon or Brush B Gon).  Wear protective clothing, like safety glasses, long sleeves, and gloves before working with any herbicide. Using the axe or hatchet, make a downward cut into the trunk of the tree roughly 2 inches (5.1 cm) long. The cut needs to be deep enough to get into the lighter-colored sapwood, so you can effectively introduce the herbicide. Once you have made the cut, pull the head of the axe or hatchet to the edge of the cut rather than out completely. Then use the spray bottle to spray the herbicide down the top side of the hatchet, allowing it run down into the deep sapwood portion of the cut.  Make sure you spray in the herbicide immediately before the softer wood in the cut has a chance to start drying out and hardening. Your specific brand of herbicide will instruct you regarding how much herbicide to spray into each cut. Various specially made injectors are also available for this purpose if you need to treat several trees. Your specific brand of herbicide will have directions for how many cuts you need to make based on the circumference of the tree. Most trees will require additional cuts with the spacing 1–3 inches (2.5–7.6 cm) apart from edge to edge. For each cut in the trunk that your brand of herbicide suggests, you want to add the same amount of herbicide. Continue using the injector or the flat side of the axe or hatchet to spray the herbicide into the cuts until you’ve gotten each one.
What is a summary of what this article is about?
Get an axe or a hatchet. Mix the herbicide in a spray bottle. Make a downward cut into the tree trunk. Spray herbicide into the cut. Repeat the downward cuts as directed. Keep adding herbicide to each cut.