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Wondered if anyone had experience of taking out tree/hedge stumps or any other useful advice please. Let me detail my plans and see what you guys/gals think.
We have a 50ft run of 12ft (wide and high) conifers that are blocking out daylight and taking up too much of the garden. I’m good experience of chainsaws so am comfortable with taking them down but wondered how people would approach taking out the stumps? – digging them out is a young man’s game, stump grinding too time consuming/not really right for the smaller 20-30cm diameter stumps.
Anyone tried burning stumps out? Poisoning stumps? Hiring a digger and going at them? Any advice appreciated. I heard using a tripod and chain is very effective but assume you need to dig it out quite a bit first.
I’ll be seasoning anything over 7cm for firewood and bonfiring the rest as I think chipping will be either too expensive or take way too long with any little DIY chipper – do you agree?
Thanks in advance, VID
When we bought the house here our neighbour and I agreed to remove a similar sized hedge to 1.8m height. We also removed two holly and a small beech.
The stumps - we left 'long' but trimmed and I hired a winch. I managed to pull out most of the stumps with thier roots in one go. I then chopped up the 1.8m 'stumps'.
Re taking the hedge down - chances are each tree will have intertwined with the neighbouring tree and even when you cut them off at the base they will just sit there and you'll have to pull them down - which is easier said than done.
Re the stumps - I'd get a digger in and dig them all out. It's the equivalent of nuking from space. Should be fun but you'll have a lot of stumps to get rid off and a trench left where they used to be.
Oh and a shed load of branches to dispose of.
As with many things, the whole job sounds a lot easier than it is in practice.
(This is my experience from taking down a 12-15' run of conifer hedging ..... and I just left the stumps for the new hedge to grow over)
I had similar and basically cut the stumps as close to the ground as possible and drilled a bunch of holes in them. I've since planted a new hedge, with the new plants placed between each of the stumps. Initially I placed logs (from the felled connifers) along the edge of the bed that the hedge is in to act as edging and kind of hide the stumps, and now that the new hedge is established I barely notice them - I assume they'll be rotting away nicely now.
We had a few big ones and the mini digger wouldn't touch them. Virtually no movement. I've dug a few out by hand. As mentioned, leaving them long helps. I kept one at about 2m tall, dug out and chopped as many roots as I could get to easily then toppled the trunk using the weight and leverage.
A mini digger will do your stumps in a few hours. A bit cheaper than a man and stump grinder, which would do a quick job on 30cm stumps and not leave you with such a big trench and stumps to get rid of.
There’s always a much bigger volume of brash than you expect, with conifers. Get the bonfire going as you go along, rather than pile it up to deal with in the future, usually will go up once you get it going even in the wet
Thanks all, this is really useful as I now have "just leave em, the new hedge will hide them" on the list! 🙂
1.5t mini-digger is great fun, but don't underestimate just how big a 30cm stump can be under the ground! Hard to dispose of once out of the ground.
If you leave them in, cut as close to the ground as you can drill some holes or a couple of deep cross cuts with the saw, and cover with a few inches of topsoil, behind a new hedge in the shade they will rot down in a couple of years
If you feel up to the job, I'd hire a stump grinder for a day. It'll be less hassle than digging the stumps out.
However working a small stump grinder can be quite physical, so if you're built like a rake, you might struggle a bit!
However, if you're planting a new hedge, just leave them, and make sure you stagger the new plants properly.
Are there any services anywhere near the hedge? If so go easy with the mini digger
I've just had 5 30m leylandi down. A massive job. Chipping is quick and easy but costs. Burning is slow and easy. There's tons of smoke and hot embers in the air, ask me how I know
We are landscaping so some stumps will be buried and planted. Without really trying we have burned most of one stump under a brash fire, so with effort they will go. Top tip is to cut branches into short lengths to keep the fire concentrated around the stump.. best of all is an old drum or metal bin placed on top and build the fire inside once the bottom is removed. If you have a leaf blower or similar it is like a super charger and will turn your fire into Saturn 5 ignition sequence!
Lots of good videos on tube. Basically the more time spent digging around the stump, the easier it gets.
For the fire, get a good heat going with dry wood to get a base, then put the fresh cut on. Our flames reached 20 feet, so something else to get excited or worried about.
Oh and baked potato supper at the end
Nuke from orbit
or
stump grinder
Along with the STW expertise. Gon on something like Arbtalk and ask there.
Stump grinding will work, digging out will work (a machine is easier) but will cause more ground disturbance, burning will take an age.
On the off chance you’re in South Wales, use this bloke:
https://instagram.com/grind_it_?igshid=NGVhN2U2NjQ0Yg==
Or brash up the trees, get rid of all that crap. hire a tirfor winch. A tu-16 should do. Choke an anchor sling round the base of one tree and choke a sling round the top of the next trees and winch them over. Axing or mattocking the roots as they get exposed, then find a skip
You'll never burn them - still full of water. Tirfor winch or a 5t engine hoist (chain/block) is the best bet. You'll need a very solid anchor.
Tirfor winch or a 5t engine hoist (chain/block) is the best bet. You’ll need a very solid anchor.
this ^^^
I took a huge row of conifer out from my grandparents years ago.
A 3T pull lift and slings. Luckily there was a few decent proper trees nearby that were staying and established. Pull-lift at base of proper tree and sling high up the conifer and pull it over (they aren’t really deep rooted).
Then swap the pull-lift to a big bow/truck intersection and the sling to just above the rootball and rip the thing out the ground which is easy as you’ve snapped half to roots with step 1
One you’ve ripped it out the ground, go the work with the chainsaw.
If you’re in West Lancs, can lend you the pull-lift and slings.
Obviously as finephilly also says, does require something(s) to use as anchors.
Definitely a mini digger. £140 for weekend hire, Saturday - stumps done, Sunday - dirt jumps 🤘
Buy a high lift jack and follow this video.
Works perfectly for conifer stumps and also removing old fence posts. I removed a 30m run of hedge and there was only one stump that resisted and needed a bit of digging.
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=1TEg30SM6bY
EDIT: leave the stump about 2 feet long and just wrap the chain around it instead of drilling through.
Don't get carried away with the chainsaw, leave the trunks 6' long and use a mattock and fencing spade to dig them out. The trunk will provide leverage to pull them out.
Mattocks are for winners.
Watching this one with interest as we’ve a conifer hedge I hate and would like to cut back and replace with something slower growing but more tolerant to being cut back.
Going by the thread title, yes, if you remove a large hedge you will get views - however, the view may not be as appealing as the hedge you removed.
I've used a stump grinder and it did the job, created a mess but got the stump removed. I've also used a winch and straps with a good dig out...the winch, although more work did a better job.
Can you reclaim light and space by radically cutting back the branches without removing the whole things?
I believe it is the convention to use whatever inappropriate motor vehicle you have to hand...
Can you reclaim light and space by radically cutting back the branches without removing the whole things?
The "green is only on the outer few inches of the branches.
If you cut it back you will be staring at the bare branches as it won't grow back.
Buy a high lift jack and follow this video.
I've tried using a jack to lift roots before... The jack sank into the ground instead of pulling the root ball up.
I'd still get a digger. You could attach a chain/strap to the stump and then to the digger and simply drive back.
(I did this with a hawthorn hedge up our drive, except I used my tractor - it didn't even know it was pulling something up!!
Mad I know but leaving or just trimming them not an option? That will be a great wildlife habitat you’re destroying. Long runs of conifers particularly important for bats, apparently. 🦇
If this was for one of my garden customers id be subcontracting it to one of the ground workers or tree surgeons, if they are 12ft wide that's a lot of brash to cut and clear - then get it all removed. Id make it someone else's problem.
If it was just a couple I'd use a digging bar and mattock.
If you're rural and have the access I'd go for a digger and driver from a farm. They'll be able to cart away the stumps and bring a bigger machine than you could probably hire. They may also be able to sort the brash/chip.