Do you have a tree stump sitting in the middle of your yard? You should probably think about getting rid of it sooner rather than later.
It could potentially cause you or one of your family members to sustain a serious injury while playing in your yard. It can also do damage to lawn equipment if you’re not careful around it. And it can even serve as an invitation for pests to congregate in your yard.
Rather than leaving it be, figure out how to remove a tree stump so that you can remove it from your life for good.
There are actually a few different methods that you can use to perform tree stump removal.
Here is how to get rid of tree stumps in several ways.
Remove It by Hand
When we say “remove a tree stump by hand,” we do not mean that you will literally be ripping it out of the ground with your bare hands.
Even if a stump is small and skinny, it’s not going to be possible for you to do tree stump removal with your hands.
You may, however, be able to do it with little more than a few hand tools. If you want to take this approach when figuring out how to remove a tree stump, follow these steps:
- Use a shovel and a mattock to loosen up all of the dirt surrounding a tree stump
- Dig down to the roots of it and separate the roots from the stump
- Continue digging down until you reach the taproot for it and sever it with an ax
- Work to wiggle it and most of its roots out of the ground
This is hands down, the hardest way to remove a stump from the ground. It might take you all day to get it done.
But it’s also the most cost-effective approach. You can remove a stump without spending a small fortune as long as you have the necessary tools lying around.
Utilize Chemicals to Remove It
While removing a tree stump by hand is the toughest way to go about doing it, utilizing chemicals to get the job done is, by far, the easiest one.
But with that being said, it’s also the one that will often take the most amount of time from start to finish.
To use chemicals to do stump removal, you’ll need to:
- Use a chainsaw to cut the tree stump down as low as you can get it
- Drill deep, wide holes in it
- Fill each of the holes in it with water before adding potassium nitrate to the mix
- Cover it and the surrounding area with a tarp and place mulch on top of the tarp
- Water the mulch on top of the tarp and check on it occasionally to ensure it’s rotting away
Under normal circumstances, it can take up to 7 years for a stump to rot away on its own.
But when you put chemicals to good use and utilize them as a stump killer, it should rot away in about a month or two tops.
Remove It by Burning It
First things first: you might not be able to burn a tree stump in your yard if you live in a residential area. Many cities and towns have outlawed this as a stump removal option.
But if your city or town allows it, it’s another pretty pain-free way for you to remove a stump from your property quickly. All you’ll need to do is:
- Drill large holes in your tree stump and sprinkle a special stump removal product on top of it
- Pour either fuel oil or kerosene into the holes in it
- Light it on fire and watch it burn
Once you’re done moving through these steps, you can cover the burned area where your tree stump used to be with topsoil to make sure the fire is completely out. This is a great option for those in rural areas who want to make stumps disappear in no time.
Put a Stump Grinder to the Test to Remove It
If you have a very large tree stump in your yard, you’re not going to be able to turn it into a distant memory with chemicals or fire.
You’re going to need to get your hands on a trusty stump grinder to make your stump a thing of the past.
There are lots of companies out there that will rent a stump grinder to you so that you can use it to take out a stump on your own. To successfully use a stump grinder for this purpose, you’ll need to do these things:
- Remove dirt, rocks, and any other debris from the area surrounding your tree stump
- Cut it down to the ground using a chainsaw
- Place the wheel for your stump grinder about six inches from it and fire it up
- Lower the stump grinder wheel down onto it while moving it side to side to begin grinding it up
- Continue moving the stump grinder wheel down and moving it side to side until the wheel is about four inches underground
- Repeat this process until your entire stump is gone and then cover the area with topsoil and grass seed
Stump grinders are powerful machines that can remove just about any tree stump you want. If you don’t feel comfortable using one on your own, you might want to hire a tree removal company to lend a hand.
Learn How to Remove a Tree Stump and Get Rid of It for Good
Some homeowners leave tree stumps in their yards for months and even years at a time. Doing this could be dangerous, and it could also affect the way in which you’re able to use your yard.
Now that you know how to remove a tree stump, get out there in your yard and pulverize it. Regardless of which method you use, you can get a stump out of your yard and reclaim the space it was taking up.
Read our blog to get more great landscaping ideas.