small stump removal?

Question

How can I remove tree stumps that range from 3 inches to 12 inches? I would like to get rid of the roots also. If I buy the tree rot won't the root grow back when I get rid of the tree stump? Does the stump decompose back into the ground or do I have to pick up the remains? How can I pull it out with a tractor or truck? Where do I place the attachement bolt? Can I even do that? Help I am at a lost? Please give some suggestions.

Answer 1

What I have done is this:
With a pick and a shovel dig a trench around the stump about 1 1/2 feet from the stump. When you hit a root cut it away with a reciprocating using a long blade designed for pruning tree branches. Continue around the whole stump until you can eventually pull it out. It's really easier that you would think. Don't use stump rot because that takes forever, and they're too small to use a stump grinder on them.
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Also- FYI- the root rot takes a lot longer to rot the stump than 2-3 weeks.

Answer 2

You can get a company to come in with a truck and pull it ( roots and all ) out of the ground, not sure what they are called but my old neighbor used to have a landscaping buisness and he had one of those trucks, it has a huge claw like thing on the back of it.
Now that Tree Rot stuff ( the kind my mom got was called "Root be gone") really works too. My mom used that stuff on a stump in her yard and the stump was gone within a couple weeks, you don't have to pick up the remains, I guess it just goes back into the ground, She just put that stuff on the stump at the beginning of July and now you can't even tell a stump was ever there, there is grass covering it now. That stuff is supposed to decompose the roots too. Even if it don't and the roots in your yard are not causing any problems, I wouldn't worry about it, once you cut a tree down the roots will die off eventually anyway.

I just called my mom and asked her about the Root be gone stuff she used and she said that you are supposed to pour some of it down your drains just in case there are roots in your plumbing in your house. She bought hers at Ace Hardware here in Iowa, but I am sure you can get it or something like it at any home improvement store. It would be a lot less expensive than hiring someone to come in with a truck and doing it.

Answer 3

First, check your local rules about burning, and if it's OK, burn them out (I'm a third generation pyromaniac, so this is usually my answer). Gather up the sticks, etc. in your yard, pile them on the stump, and get a good fire going. If it's hot enough, and/or you let it burn long enough, it will also burn out part of the root structure.