What To Do With A Tree Stump In The Front Yard? (Do This!)

Tree stumps are a natural part of lawncare and gardening. I mean, trees don’t last forever. Eventually, you may have to cut down the tree standing in your backyard. When this happens, you’re going to be left with a massive (or not so massive) tree stump where the tree used to be. What do you do with this?

Tree stump removal is often the most HOA-approved way to handle a stump in your front yard. If you do not want to remove it, you can hide it through careful plant arrangement, use it as a table, or decorate it to add a focal point to a front yard garden.

There are a lot of ways that you can work with a tree stump. To make your options easier for you, we’re going to go through the basics.

While I’m a huge fan of seeing whimsy in front yards, I’m also a realist. I know that a lot of parts of the country have local ordinances regarding tree stump cleanup and removal. Many regions will not allow you to keep a tree stump on your front yard, even if you have a nice setup. If this is the case, professional stump removal is your only choice.

If you have ordinances regarding this issue, you might want to get the removal done fast. Fines for a stump that is not removed can be as high as $300. Moreover, if you recently hired an arborist to remove your tree, call them up. They might also be obligated to remove the stump, too, depending on the local laws.

Tree stump removal is exactly what you think it is. It’s the use of chemicals and physical force to kill the tree and remove the stump. In most cases, what happens is that people will chemically treat the stump to promote rot. Then, they will pull it out of the ground and dig it out. Then, the stump is taken into a wood chipper or sent elsewhere.

While you can do tree stump removal on your own, most people prefer to hire someone for this. It can get somewhat expensive for professional services, but it’s still worth it due to the labor cost. You should expect to pay between $60 to $400 for a tree stump removal.

Another popular option that people can pursue is hiding the tree stump. This can be done by strategically planting flowers around the area. You can do this by choosing tall plants to surround the stump, then adding potted flowers on top of the stump.

We suggest some low-lying shrubs that have thick, evergreen foliage for the surrounding plants. If you want to add your own arrangement, make sure it’s taller than the stump itself, even during the winter. Otherwise, it might look a bit sparse. Grinding the stump as close to the ground as possible is important here.

While it may not be the ideal route, some people prefer to keep the tree stump in its place. This is doable if you don’t have ordinances about it, but be careful. Leaving a tree stump be is something that you need to think twice about, simply because it carries some risk to it.

The most obvious issue is that people might end up tripping over the stump. That’s a lawsuit liability, sadly. However, there’s more to this issue than just that. Rotting tree stumps attract pests like termites and fleas. Moreover, they can also encourage certain diseases that take hold in local plantlife to spread.

If you want to remove a stump from your property, then you have to think about the depth of the removal. In most cases, you will be able to get rid of the stump at ground level and let it be. However, this means that the roots might still be left in your yard.

Keeping roots in your yard is rarely a good idea. Tripping over tree roots isn’t fun, and as the stump’s roots rot, critters can come by and make their home in your yard. If you want to remove the stump, make sure that you dig up the roots—at least to the point that they are no longer near 6 inches from the ground.

When a company removes your stump, they will usually put the stump in a wood chipper. This will turn the stump into mulch or wood chips for a playground. So, don’t worry. Your stump will find a way to remain useful and eco-friendly in the garden. In some cases, people might also use the wood chips for kindling or tinder.

In some cases, you can request to keep the stump. People who want to repurpose a stump should consider this if they want to turn their stump into a table indoors.

Related Questions

What are the best plants to help hide a tree stump?

Most people prefer to use climbing ivies (like English ivy), tall flowers (like daisies), and short shrubs. When choosing a plant to use as a shield or cover for your stump, you need to take the height of the stump into account. Shorter stumps can be totally covered with climbing ivies or creeping plants.

Can grass grow over a tree stump?

Grass might be resilient, but it still will not grow over the tree stump. Grass needs to have real soil underneath it in order to grow. This is one of the many reasons why HOAs do not want to see tree stumps on lawns. The large brown patch looks jarring on perfectly green lawns.

How do you cover up tree roots?

The easiest way to cover up tree roots is with a nice, thick layer of mulch that has a similar color. However, some people want to have a more plant-based cover. In this case, creeping ivy and regular English ivy can provide a beautiful color for roots that jut out.People who want to cover up roots in more imaginative ways can do so by adding decorative statues or “fairy homes.” Some have even used painted stones.