[Vaughan]

We are building near Uzes in Gard, Languedoc. The site is currently wild garrigue and is covered in what I think are Kermes Oak saplings. At first glance they appear to be knee high holly, but searching the web and speaking with a local nursery, think it is Kermes oak. We have made a brief attack on one plant with a pick axe and the root seems a foot deep and fairly well established. The nursery recommend extraction as the only option, but the site is 1500 m2, so a lot of work. Any other suggestions about how we can get rid of these saplings much appreciated.

[David Bracey]

We had the same problem when we moved to a new house in Carrignargues, Uzes.  The garden was full of evergreen oak seedlings,  These I topped with a three wheel brush mower which did a hgood job.  While the oaks are deep rooted they are killed when growing tip is removed. 

There were some particularly dense patches which I simply cut trimmed over to a simple shape with some long hedge cutters and trimmed off the new growth once or twice a year.  I must admit I was quite proud with results of  bonsied? Q ilex in the Languedoc.

[Joanna Savage]

Vaughan, what a perfect  blank palette you have to begin your garden. I envy David his shaped Q.ilex thicket.

The photos and text in Nicole de Vesian, Modern Design in Provence by Louisa Jones give an excellent idea of some of the possibilities for using native oaks in the garden.

I am envious as here in Toscana I am encouraging as many of the native oak seedlings as I possibly can. My plan is to create an intermittent upper canopy which will provide some shade and, with luck, dark interestingly shaped trunks. However our species is Q. petraea and it is deciduous.

The oaks are useful too as they indicate where the ground rock lies. If they doen't get their roots down into the rock fissures within a year they die off. They do a wonderful job at holding the soil on a steeply sloping site. Good luck with your planning and gardening

[Vaughan]

Many thanks for the advice folks, will definitely try the brush mower method.