It also invades forest communities, usually as a result of past disturbance such as grazing. Summer cutting affects the plant when its root reserves are low and the possibility of adverse weather during the fall and winter may further harm the plants. Repeated cutting may be necessary to control Osage orange completely because it resprouts from the stump and by root suckers, and may cover large areas vegetatively. Cutting is most feasible with smaller plants. Although girdling has not been tried as yet on Osage orange, it may prove successful on smaller trees that do not have thick bark.
Older trees have quite thick bark, making girdling difficult.
For girdling, the phloem should be removed without damaging the xylem. The xylem should be left to continue to conduct root reserves into the crown, thereby diminishing the capacity of the tree to resprout. The girdles should be checked every several weeks at first to make sure that bark does not develop over the cut area. Girdling can be done with an ax, saw, or chainsaw. Two parallel cuts 3-4 inches apart, cutting through the bark slightly deeper than the cambium, are needed.