I would just cut back branches a bit to make it easier work around, digging them out. Best when still dormant.

Where are you in Missouri? MU has an orchard near New Franklin where I assume they do research on apples and other stuff like chestnuts. They let charitable organizations pick the apples free for distribution to food banks and such. Pickers are allowed to pick some for themselves after they fill a quota, and a friend of mine got some beautiful Jonathans and Golden Delicious. Perfect fruit which had obviously been protected. I got an e-mail address for that place and received a quick reply to a question about CAR, but it has been long enough that I don't have it anymore. I don't know how bad fire blight is in my area near Columbia. I don't recall the specific answer to my CAR question, but I think one of the controls suggested was the active ingredient in Immunox. Try looking up MU New Franklin orchard to see if you can find an e-mail address. Chuck

I feel for ya girl! We have been trying to clean up our wooded area around our house too. Before our house was built here 30 years ago, there used to be little saw mill here & we've found old parts to the mill & other junk that needs to be cleared out. We used part of one of the pieces as a sort of yard decoration. We've cleared out tons of brush that had grown right up to the house. We also made a camping area to park our camper. We've been at it for 4 1/2 yrs. now & still not done, but we've come a long way. I wonder if we'll ever get there, you probably feel the same way. Hopefully your plants will keep the run-off at a minimum. Perhaps you could make little trenches at the top that form into one that runs into a little pond area at the bottom. Not sure if that would work, but maybe something to consider.

I'm not an expert, so you will have to google it unless someone else chimes in. But those are aerial burr knots which m111 are prone to grow. My trees are 10 years old and they have outgrown them, I.e., it has not been an issue. No pun intended. I did have to battle knot borers but the latex paint wash at the base helped. It is less of an issue now as the trunks are bigger