Across the South, many forest land managers may opt to use mechanical site preparation, especially when soil treatments are deemed appropriate. While these mechanical treatments may be highly effective at addressing a particular soil problem or debris issue, they are typically less effective at control of competing vegetation. In these scenarios where pines are planted, a woody release treatment using herbicides is usually applied at the end of either the first or second growing season. The purpose of these applications is to provide long-term control of the woody competitors with typically short-term control of any herbaceous species on the site
