Two very large stumps!!

[mrcman]

Hi folks,

I have two very large hard Maple stumps that need removed or worked down. I got prices on having them ground out. That turned out to be very expensive. I really don't want the mess that is left from a backhoe or dozer.

Any ideas on a solution to getting rid of these stumps. I wouldn't even mind if it took a few years to get rid of them.

Thanks Tony

 

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

i know there is a chemical you can pour into holes in the stumps but it may not take care of the roots left behind, and i know it can take many years for stumps to break down. you probably will get this stuff at a local feed store where you'd expect a lot of farmers to be using this stuff. sorry i can't quite remember the name of it. i know it is supposed to work on large rocks too.

i have at least 4 stumps in my yard that are over 20+ years in the rotting process and so far i'm using one as a seat at the corner of my garlic/pepper bed and is still somewhat solid-at least for my seat. another stump is probably about ready to try and pull it since it is hollow and the ground around it is getting soft so i know the roots are probably rotted too. another stump i took out with an ax because it is too close to my root cellar's door and was almost as light as balsa wood, and attracting carpenter ants :/. and another is too close to the foundation and will be worked on this summer when i have time.

i have a tree the city took most of the branches off a few winters ago because it was next to the road and was probably 75+ years old and not healthy. they left a 12 ft tall stump and said they would come back for it when they had more time. that was about 5 years ago when my FIL still owned the house. so a neighbor asked if he could cut the rest out to use for firewood, which i said OK and asked if he could leave it about 2 ft high and carve out the center to use as a planter. he did but now i have to find some plants that enjoy full sun and prefer it a little dry. this is next to our driveway so i thought it would be good to keep as a decoration till it was rotten enough to pull or chop out since it is a HUGE stump! but not has big as the maple that just got removed a few months ago. tree had to be older than our house which is about 110 years. the tree company took it all down for $800 but left the stump flush with the ground so i can't use it for much. i'll have to get a pic later to show all the rings it had. strangely this tree was having issues with rotting branches but the main trunk was very healthy and solid when they cut it down in sections.

if you do get the stump out i know there is a Victorian gardening/landscaping thing where you use the pulled stumps as decor. it is called 'stumpery' and was on a show found on HGTV a few years ago. my 3rd grade teacher's house is decorated with small stumps like that! it looks really interesting with all her hosta, ferns and other semi-shade loving plants with her green lawn in between.

 

[MontyJ]

Yep, I have removed a few Ash stumps and a gigantic Maple stump. Buy a can of stump remover (potassium nitrate). Drill several large holes (at least 1" in diameter) around the edge of the stump about 2" in from the edge. Then drill more holes near the center, also straight down. Try to drill as deeply as possible, until you hit dirt if you can. Then drill even more holes at an angle to connect the outer holes to the inner holes like this |/| . Then pour in the stump rot and let it go to work. If you are feeling really ambitious, you can also try to dig under the stump some to speed things up, but you don't have too. I also covered the stumps with leaves and grass clippings so they stayed wet. Eventually the stump will start getting soft (mine were fresh stumps and started softening up the following spring). After it has softened up, remove anything you covered it with and let it dry out for a couple of weeks. I threw plastic sheeting over them if it was going to rain. This is best done in the summer time. Once they are fairly dry, pour kerosene down into the stump and put a match to it. This is where digging under the stump helps because it creates an even better draft. The fire will just smolder and stink for a few days, but the stump will be gone.

A few things to keep in mind...

The larger roots will still be there. They will rot away fairly quickly and can be chopped out with a mattock.

Urea (ammonium nitrate) works just as well as stump remover.

Simply drilling the holes, digging under the stump and cutting as many roots as possible, followed by covering the stump with leaves and grass and keeping it wet will also eventually rot the stump out to a point that you can just chop it out with a mattock with not much effort, but it takes about 3 years for larger stumps. This would be the option to choose if you don't like the idea of dumping kerosene into the stump. This is what I started doing when I noticed grass didn't seem to want to grow as well over the burned stumps. It is important to cut as many of the larger roots as you can, especially with the Maples. Mine kept trying to grow back and turn into a Maple bush until I cut the roots. That stump was about 2 1/2 across and was from an old Silver Maple. I cut all of the large roots near the surface and that did the trick.

 

[Nyboy]

I went to big box store, bought top of birdbath and placed on stump. Problem solved for under $20.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Several years ago I had a similar problem with a huge red maple in the front yard. The roots had plugged a sewer line and when I had the sewer line replaced, that killed the tree. That tree was right next to the house. That hurt. Not just the cost, but it was a beautiful tree. It provided shade for the house so our cooling bills went up after we lost it.

I had the tree removed but didnt pay the big bucks for the stump grinder. They cut it off pretty low to the ground. I got some stuff, probably from Home Depot or Sears at that time, where you drill holes in the stump and pour this chemical in. Its supposed to help rot the stump. It still took over a year but eventually it rotted enough I could dig it out, sort or busting it up with a mattock as I dug, not taking it out in just one huge chunk. That still was hard manual labor.

Depending on where they are, you might be able to use this chemical to help them rot, then burn them out when they do rot. I havent done that but the way Ive heard is, after the stump rotten, maybe a year, drill holes in it, pour kerosene (not gasoline. Gasoline will explode) in those holes and keep them full for a few days while that kerosene soaks through the rotten wood, then set it afire. It will smolder for days so you have a real fire danger you have to be careful of. Youre left with a hole with some charcoal in the bottom.

By the way, I lkike Nyboy's solution if it works for you.

 

[Stubbornhillfarm]

You could fence them in, pour some corn around the base and get a couple of pigs. They will dig them up for you and then you can have some farm raised pork too!

Probably won't work in every situation, but depending on where you live and where the stumps are....of course you have got many other great suggestions as well. And

 

[baymule]

Hack a hole in the center, fill with compost and plant something in it. I have a 100 year old tree stump in my front yard that I grow squash in. DH laughs at me, but he eats the squash. Oh, and I have tomatoes planted next to it too!

 

[so lucky]

Put cushions on top and sit down and have a beer.

 

[Smart Red]

I've used the "pour down hole" stuff. We actually waited a year and added the stuff again. When we set fire, it seemed that the fire burned many of the roots as well - I remember the ground lowered where the stump had been.

My BFF burns her leaves atop the stumps she has. It may take a few years, but this works well to get rid of stumps.

 

[mrcman]

Morning all,

Guess I never expected such a variety of answers. I appreciate them alleach and every one of them.

I will likely go with the holes and the chemical powder.

However I did laugh about the others i.e. bird bathvery important for the birds to have a bath, pigswe had pigs years ago and they are the rootingest critters youll ever find, squash planterafraid the pigs would eat them, beer seatnow I especially like that one but am afraid the wife would get after me, and as far as burning my stumpits too close to my barn, like only a few feet.

So in conclusion I would like to thank each and every one of you.

Tony