Does it need to come completely out or just get below ground level? You can rent a stump grinder and grind it down to almost nothing.

I used a sawzall to cut the roots on a similar type of stump. I just kept hacking away until I could dig it out with a shovel.

Keep digging around and under the root ball, then if necessary use a: engine hoist, or ladders and a come a long.

Use a mattock to dig and cut roots. Use a shovel to remove roots and dirt.

Find out if you need a permit to burn yard tree/shrub trimmings, etc., and if you need a permit, get one.

Find a large metal trash can lid or oil drum lid that would cover the full circumference of the area where the shrub was growing. You might be able to find one at local metal recycle/scrap yard or Habitat for Humanity thrift store.

Clear as much flammable stuff from that entire side of the yard as is movable. Then chop up the dirt all around the sticks/stump for at least a couple of feet.

Minimize the people in the yard with you specifically making sure there are no children or pets in the yard.

Do not wear loose clothing that could catch fire.

Have a water hose on hand with the outdoor faucet turned on and/or large buckets full of water handy.

Add kerosene soaked large pieces of cloth threaded between/within the sticks/stumps. Do not add paper or leaves that could blow away while still burning.

Carefully light the kerosene soaked rags and let the sticks/stumps to ground level.

Place your large metal lid over the burned sticks/stump and leave it there a full growing season and the roots, unable to sprout for lack of sunlight, should die. Blocking the sunlight for a season or two (depending upon the kind of and size of the plant) works for smaller stumps even without burning them. A paint c n or five gallon bucket with a rock over it will block the sunlight of smaller plants.

You want a metal lid instead of plastic if you're going to burn the sticks/stump because you want to be able to use the metal lid to smother the fire should the wind pick up or you have any other reason to believe the fire might spread.

Once the fire is out, even a large plastic container with a rock atop it to hold it in place will block the sun to kill the roots.

Note: This doesn't work with wisteria or other plants that will spread via root underground.

Contact a lawn maintenance company and see how much they charge for removing tree stumps, and if it is in your budget, have them do it. That's the easiest way.

If you have an ax and don't mind sharpening it afterward, chop at it until what's left of it it is well below ground level, cover it with several layers of black plastic and cover it up with dirt. Doing that and adding several patio blocks atop it and a bird bath above that should keep the roots from sprouting again.

For the future, if you want the stump gone don't cut it so short - leave yourself 3-4 ft to use as a lever. You may be able to pound a spud bar into the middle to get some leverage. At this point you're low enough that you should be able to dig your way towards the middle and pop it.

Since you've already dug a ditch around it, you might try filling it with water to release the roots from surrounding ground.

Crape myrtles are notorious for sending up shoots. We have a problem with them coming up between the rocks in our patio. I hit the shoots with Roundup.

For a slow-motion fix, there's always Stump-B-Gone. I agree with @Tara. I'd call and get a bid from someone with a stump grinder. Sounds like you'd done a lot already! Good luck!

It looks like you're well along as it is. If you have some good water pressure, use the water jet of a hose nozzle to blast dirt off of the roots, in order to expose them more. As you expose them, you can use loppers or a saw to cut through them individually. The trench you've created will quickly fill with mud in the root-cleaning process. Shovel this out every so often in order to create more room for more root cleaning. After not too long, there should be enough roots exposed that you can see a clear path to your end goal.

Awesome! thank you

Unless you are building a pond you don’t need to remove the stump. Arborists will cut the trunk just below ground level then use a chemical that prevents any sprouting

Linda Thomas

If you want to plant another tree, or plant a garden, you would certainly need to remove it.

We used a car jack to lift the roots of a huge eucalyptus tree. - after they were cut of course. lol We then used the upturned roots to plant a succulent garden. When we moved to Washington one of the first road trips to a garden was a stumpery. Very popular in England and upturned tree roots planted with ferns and shallow rooted shade loving plants. It did take two very strong men to finish the job and turn them all the way over cutting any that were too far under the stump and were holding the stump in the ground. Creating a big stumpery might require a back hoe.

Here is a link for a DIY https://extension.psu.edu/creating-a-stumpery

Hire a stump grinder from Craigslist. They will have it done on 20 minutes. I've hired them four times and nothing works like it. Fast and cheap ($40)

• If u have access to your backyard and have a pick up truck (prefer 4x4) attach a chain and give it a tug! Or an engine hoist and lift it out, while cutting out the roots!

If you can wait it out … Trim as low as possible. Wet it well. Plaster it with epsom salt. Literally plaster it. Add a few layers of newspaper. Wet the newspaper without washing away the salt. Cover thoroughly with heavy gauge black plastic. Fill in the hole. Cover as much of the plastic as possible and leave it to rot. After a year, kick it a few times. It mat start to break apart or need more time Under plastic. I used this method on an overgrown euonymus that was too close to close to a foundation and sidewalk. It took two years but it worked.

"Please do not use Round-Up - it's now known to cause cancer in humans"

That is actually not true. You have to read the fine print. Trial lawyers are claiming that it is SUSPECTED of causing cancer, and are now trying to demonstrate it in court, as opposed to scientific literature. So that would put it in a category similar to Global Cooling ... I mean Warming ... I mean Climate Change. In the end, it will probably wash out to cause cancer in California only and everyone else would be safe.

carol beachlady

"Patience is the best thing here - Please do not use Round-Up - it's now known to cause cancer in humans"

Oh stop. That is simply not true.

Stump successfully removed!🤗Thanks to all of your suggestions! Now for my shed issue... it sit on half concrete half dirt causing a mess. I would like to turn shed to face the yard and then install sod and maybe some pavers in front of shed🤷‍♀️. But need to figure out how to fix shed issue. Any suggestions? Do not want to pour any concrete.

Trying to send pic but it won’t let me.

Rose - great! Start a new thread please - with pics. :-)

And here it is: https://www.gardenweb.com/discussions/5864641/help-shed-foundation-causing-a-mess#n=15