Commercial Stump Grinding and Removal

Why the stump has to go

A stump left in place is not just untidy. It creates four practical problems on a commercial property.

It is a trip hazard, particularly once it weathers down to near ground level and grass grows around it. It obstructs mowing, which means hand work around it forever. It can resprout, producing a thicket of shoots from the root system. And it decays, which attracts termites and fungi close to whatever is nearby.

The exception is a stump nowhere near anything, which can reasonably be left to decompose over a decade. On a commercial site those locations are rare.

Grinding depth depends on what goes back

Grinding is quoted by depth, and the right depth is set by what the space is going to be.

For turf, six to eight inches below grade is enough. Backfill with soil and the area can be seeded or sodded.

For a planting bed, deeper, because shrub roots need more than eight inches of usable soil.

For a replacement tree in the same location, considerably deeper and wider, and the grindings need removing rather than backfilling. Wood chips decomposing in a planting hole tie up nitrogen and create a hole that settles, which is a poor start for a new tree.

Getting a quote for the wrong depth is the most common way a stump job has to be done twice.

The roots the grinder does not reach

Grinding removes the stump and the root flare. It does not remove the root system, which on a mature tree extends well beyond the canopy.

For most purposes that is fine. Those roots decay over years without causing problems.

Two situations are exceptions. Where large surface roots are lifting pavement, grinding the stump changes nothing about them and they need addressing separately. And where a species resprouts vigorously from roots, removing the stump alone can trigger suckering across a wide area.

Both are worth knowing before the work rather than after, because they change what the job is.