(For the solution I found, see edit below) And I want to kill it with extreme prejudice. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HdcQFbj1CX4 Was planted by my wife years ago and before we knew, they kept sprouting ever farther away from the original plant. When pulling out the small, fresh plants I found there's a network of roots about one to two inches below the surface. That's where most of them seem to sprout from. I used to think these little ones were growing from seeds and didn't think much of it. Pulled a good 15 yards of roots from the ground so far, lawn looked like someone pulled electric cable from a plastered wall. Any tips from someone who had to deal with this? Edit: Girdling/Ringing seems to be the best method for this plant. https://www.fs.usda.gov/t-d/pubs/pdfpubs/pdf99242809/pdf99242809pt01.pdf Don't cut the tree because it will grow a gazillion of epicormic sprouts. https://www.colacotway.vic.gov.au/files/assets/public/trimfiles/my-property/emergency-management-relief-recovery-council-support-2016-2017/wyesep-connect-published-fact-sheet-epicormic-growth.pdf Epicormic growth is a plant response to damage or stress. It is the growth of new shoots from epicormic buds that lie dormant beneath the bark. Also complete girdling is not recommended. One should leave a small bridge and cut that after a year. It's best done in late summer, early fall, before the leaves are able to transfer their energy to the root system.