Twisting Stumps out of Ground?

[Suburban Plowboy]

Twisting the stump with a pry bar and garden tractor didn't work, but I had to cut a slot in the stump to try it, and that gave me a place to pry. I put a chainsaw in the hole and cut horizontally through the stump. Some bits needed prying. Others fell out. I ended up with a wood platform maybe 9" below ground.

Realizing my drill removed wood much faster than a chainsaw, I drilled a bunch of deep 1" holes through the remains of the stump. Didn't take long at all. I may bop it with a maul and see if any of it will break off. There isn't much holding it together now.

I think the tap root is only under a small part of the ball, because the drill hit dirt quickly in every part except for one little area.

 

[mapper]

I had an 18" maple stump that even with a four foot perimeter trench,, and my 10,000 pound tractor pulling, I could not rock it,,

Then, I hooked the wood splitter to it with a chain,, and chained the splitter to a standing 24" tree,,

That stump could not resist the 40,000 pound pull,, the splitter pulled the remaining roots,,
once the stump got moving good,, the tractor could then pull it,,

I flush cut a 12" locust, and an 18" oak tree, back in 1982,,
yesterday, 37 years later, I drove over them as I mowed the field,,,
those stumps are as intact as the day I cut those trees down,,

Black locust and certain species of oak are very decay resistant. Neighbor cut down a huge locust last year, now he has a huge stump and a groove of thorny locust saplings from the roots

 

[Suburban Plowboy]

I have found diesel to work well at killing stumps. Removing them is the hard part.

 

[CobyRupert]

Now that you have the holes drilled, you can fill them with motor oil, diesel or kerosene, let it soak in for a week or two, put a bag of charcoal on it, light it and tend it with a leaf blower.

 

[Oldoak]

Years ago when I had no money here's what I did.
First I got one of those heavy galvanized metal spools wire comes on. They're big, about 3-4ft across & the same height.
The stump I'd drill holes, maybe inch or so, few inches deep, pour gasoline and used motor oil on it. Let it soak in real good.
Then barrel over it, propped up an inch or two like four around base to ground. This lets in air. A little paper, little oil light it.
It would burn for over a week. Eventually we'd see flames way underground roots would be burning.

Years ago we used to ring stumps with old truck tires and put papers and fuel oil inside the tire to get them burning. That's also how we started brush piles on fire. Buried an old tire or two under the pile. I could just imagine the uproar of doing something like that today.

Always had to remember to clean up the wires from the tires. If you ever caught them with a rotary brush cutter, you would never make that mistake again. Wound those blasted wires around the spindle like a ball of baling twin. Spent hours cutting them loose with a pair of wire nippers and pliers.

 

[Fuddy1952]

Years ago we used to ring stumps with old truck tires and put papers and fuel oil inside the tire to get them burning. That's also how we started brush piles on fire. Buried an old tire or two under the pile. I could just imagine the uproar of doing something like that today.

Always had to remember to clean up the wires from the tires. If you ever caught them with a rotary brush cutter, you would never make that mistake again. Wound those blasted wires around the spindle like a ball of baling twin. Spent hours cutting them loose with a pair of wire nippers and pliers.

Me too! You hear the sound, say "#@%&$#" , get out the cutters!
The heavy gauge wire spool metal center works so well because up an inch or two is like opening draft on a wood stove. The leaf blower works also, like a blacksmith's bellows.
An old tire under a big brush pile is great. Except for all those floating black tadpoles

 

[Suburban Plowboy]

If anyone cares, I got three stumps out of the ground this weekend. I waited for a rainy period to loosen up the dirt, and I tried again. It makes a big difference.

I ran the subsoiler around the stumps to yank or at least locate roots branching off from them. When the subsoiler couldn't cut them, I drilled holes in them and then cut them with a Sawzall. Eventually, the stumps loosened enough for the subsoiler to get them.

I bent the tabs that hold the hitch pins on the subsoiler. That surprised me. I didn't think this little tractor could do that. I would guess the tabs are 7/16" plate. I doubt I can bend them back.

I don't care if I ruin the subsoiler. It's way cheaper than paying someone to remove stumps. I could buy three of these things every year and still come out way ahead.



I also ran into a hidden boulder while I was working. I don't know what it weighs, but my FEL's limit is 1500 pounds, and there are probably 300 pounds of forks on it, and the FEL was not totally happy lifting the boulder. I put a rope around it and tied it to one fork. It wasn't until the boulder was just about to leave the ground that I realized it was going to swing! Luckily the Kubota has a very sturdy bumper.



I have three blackberry plants I need to put in the ground, and now I have a place to put them. My ground is sandy, so I'm wondering if I should put a barrier under the plants to slow the dispersion of water. I was thinking of burying pieces of a tarp maybe 15" down. The soil here gets wet fast, and then it dries out fast. I plan to use fancy bagged soil that supposedly retains water well.

 

[3Ts]

Always had to remember to clean up the wires from the tires. If you ever caught them with a rotary brush cutter, you would never make that mistake again. Wound those blasted wires around the spindle like a ball of baling twin. Spent hours cutting them loose with a pair of wire nippers and pliers.

Or the plastic baling twine that wraps around the spindle past the shield and melts from the friction and turns into one solid mass.

 

[rd_macgregor]

For an implement that gets that much force applied to it, you really need a lower arm mounting setup with two ears and a through pin. My box blade came with the projecting pin...which quickly got bent; I had a welder modify the mount by adding another mount ear and now have no issues with things bending (well, not counting the rippers!).

If anyone cares, I got three stumps out of the ground this weekend. I waited for a rainy period to loosen up the dirt, and I tried again. It makes a big difference.

I ran the subsoiler around the stumps to yank or at least locate roots branching off from them. When the subsoiler couldn't cut them, I drilled holes in them and then cut them with a Sawzall. Eventually, the stumps loosened enough for the subsoiler to get them.

I bent the tabs that hold the hitch pins on the subsoiler. That surprised me. I didn't think this little tractor could do that. I would guess the tabs are 7/16" plate. I doubt I can bend them back.

I don't care if I ruin the subsoiler. It's way cheaper than paying someone to remove stumps. I could buy three of these things every year and still come out way ahead.

View attachment 609637

I also ran into a hidden boulder while I was working. I don't know what it weighs, but my FEL's limit is 1500 pounds, and there are probably 300 pounds of forks on it, and the FEL was not totally happy lifting the boulder. I put a rope around it and tied it to one fork. It wasn't until the boulder was just about to leave the ground that I realized it was going to swing! Luckily the Kubota has a very sturdy bumper.

View attachment 609640

I have three blackberry plants I need to put in the ground, and now I have a place to put them. My ground is sandy, so I'm wondering if I should put a barrier under the plants to slow the dispersion of water. I was thinking of burying pieces of a tarp maybe 15" down. The soil here gets wet fast, and then it dries out fast. I plan to use fancy bagged soil that supposedly retains water well.

 

[Suburban Plowboy]

I've been having more fun with the tractor today. I had two large rocks next to each other, and I started digging around them trying to find out where the separation was. I hadn't been able to move them with the subsoiler, so I figured I'd find a way to move one of them, and then the other would go easier.

I found a projection I could tie a strap to, and I pulled with the tractor. A piece of ground the size of a yoga mat started to rise out of the yard. Turns out there was only one rock. I got it halfway out, propped it with a 4x4, fastened the strap in a better position, and dragged it out. I had no idea the little Kubota could pull like this. Lifting the rock with the subsoiler didn't work, but the strap uprooted and dragged the rock without hesitation.

Now I'm stuck with a huge rock.