Uprooting trees - how to get rid of tree roots

In almost every suburban area there is a need to get rid of the growing tree. The reasons for this may be different: the tree has dried up or decayed, creates too much shadow, the danger of breakage of power lines and the like. In addition, the negative processes taking place inside the drying plants can reach the neighboring ones and kill them. If the wood split does not present any difficulties, then removing the remaining stump can be quite a serious task.

Uprooting trees

If the tree can still be saved, then you can use the services of specialists - arborists, which are very many in large cities, for example, in Moscow and the Moscow region. Their prices are not too sky-high.

Plot

However, if a decision is made, the destruction of the tree should begin. Uprooting of trees consists of several stages, the first of which is the cutting of the main trunk.

How many trees live

Depending on the species, the lifespan of trees can range from several tens to several thousand years. However, the process of their growth does not stop, which implies an increase in the diameter of the trunk and the size of the root system. It is also influenced by the growing conditions: soil composition, precipitation, ecological situation.

The table below provides information on how many trees live, the most common in Russia. Values ​​in parentheses are given for favorable conditions under which they can live much more.

How to remove dried trees from a site

Before rooting out a stump, it is necessary to get rid of a tree. A dried tree should be removed in parts. First you need to get rid of twigs and branches on the trunk itself. If the tree is large enough and strong, you can climb it, observing the utmost care. If it is small in height, you should use a ladder or stepladder.

When the trunk branches are removed, you can proceed to the next step, namely trimming the trunk. At the same time, it must be sawed in parts, first the upper part, and then the lower one, leaving a stump about a meter and a half high. The upper parts of the large trunk, it is advisable to lower down on a rope.

For safety, it is necessary to determine in advance a cleared place where it is planned to dump a tree. Then gradually file the trunk from different sides, achieving its tilt in the right direction.

How to get rid of tree stumps and roots

The word “uprooting” should be understood as the process of pulling a stump out of the ground with great effort. Therefore, the main difficulty of uprooting is to rid the garden of the roots, which, in fact, keep the tree in the ground.

Uprooting

Ways to uproot an old stump on a site

There are three ways to remove stumps:

• mechanical, using special devices, including replacing a person. This method includes crushing and uprooting with a tractor or a mechanical winch;
• chemical using chemically active substances. The method is quite simple, but requires a large amount of time (about a year) and the cost of acquiring the necessary drugs;
• manual, when only improvised tools and human strength are used for uprooting. This method is maximally effective only for a stump having a small diameter, or if it is dry or rotten.

Removing tree debris from dry land by crushing

For this method, a special device called a crusher is used. It is a vertical cutter with a drive, which cuts off the remnants of dry wood in parts. As a result, a hole and chips remain from the stump.

Splitting up

Such services are provided by specialized organizations. You can also purchase a grinder for personal use in a shop selling chainsaws and other similar tools.

However, this method has its drawbacks. When crushing, the roots are practically not affected, so the solution to the problem of how to get rid of the roots of the trees remains at the discretion of the owner of the site. After removing the stump in this way, a new tree cannot be planted in its place for at least three years. Well, the negative processes that led to the drying of the tree continue in the roots and can spread to other trees planted on the site. The same applies to pests that cannot be etched in this way.

Rooting out stumps on the site with an ax and crowbar

First you need to dig the earth around the stump at a distance of 0.5-1 m and to a depth of half a meter (depending on the root system of the tree). After that, with an ax, chop off the roots in a circle, trying to capture as many of them as possible. It will depend on how easily the stump leaves its place. If the trunk diameter is small (up to 20 cm), then using a crowbar to split the wood, thus removing the stump in parts.

If the tree is large enough, then you need to use another method, for which you need an assistant and a little preparation. On the stump itself, you need to apply horizontal grooves, for which you should hook the rope. The assistant will pull the barrel in different directions, trying to loosen the stump. In this case, other roots will also be exposed, which should also be chopped off.

The larger the diameter of the stump, the more roots hold it in the ground. Some types of trees, for example, baobab, have an exceptionally wide trunk up to 8 m in diameter. The growth process continues as long as trees have been living for years.

How to uproot trees if your efforts do not help? In this case, you can use a mechanical winch mounted on the tractor. A rope break is a danger, since it can damage not only the surrounding plants or the tractor itself (windshield), but also injure people. Therefore, when using the equipment, excess should be removed from the danger zone. The main disadvantage of mechanized uprooting of trees and stumps is the preparation of the working space and its inapplicability in hard-to-reach places, as well as a decent cost estimate.

Another minus - it is not known how to remove the remains of tree roots from the site.

Tools and fixtures needed to cut and uproot a tree

The main set of tools for uprooting stumps can be found on every household plot:

• shovel (for excavating the earth and chopping small roots);
• ax;
• hacksaw;
• rope (for tilting the trunk);
• comfortable shoes, gloves;
• manual or mechanical winch (if necessary).

How to get rid of stumps without uprooting: a chemical way of burning with saltpeter

How to destroy the roots of sawn trees without using manual uprooting? Chemistry will help. The main requirement is the presence of a large amount of time. For example, if the saltpeter is laid in the summer, then the stump should be burned out next spring.

Burning out

Holes with a diameter of about 1 cm and a depth of 40 cm are drilled on the stump surface. Potassium or sodium nitrate is poured into them in an amount of 100 g each, and water is poured from above. After this, the holes are corked with wooden corks, and the stump itself is covered with plastic wrap to prevent moisture from entering. In this state, the stump remains until spring.

In spring, the film is removed and corks are removed. Any combustible liquid is poured into the holes and set on fire. Nitrate has already penetrated deeply into the root system and releases oxygen during combustion. Therefore, the stump is completely burned up to the smallest roots, which allows you to remove the causative agents of tree diseases. Manual removal is not required.

With an overdose of chemicals, the soil is contaminated with nitrate. You can not use this method on peat soils, otherwise you can burn not only the stump, but the entire area along with the house.

Urea rooting out with urea

The process itself is similar to the one described above, but it does not require burning, so it can be used on any type of soil.

The stump is cut flush with the ground, after which deep holes are made in it where urea is laid, and water is poured from above. The holes are clogged, and the stump is closed with a film. After a year, the tree is completely destroyed, up to the roots.

An obvious advantage is that urea, as a fertilizer, creates a fertile soil layer, so after such a treatment it is enough to dig the ground and you can plant any plants. Well, and most importantly, you do not need to uproot the stump manually.

The disadvantages include the long stump destruction time and the cost of buying urea.

Using bark to mulch trees and shrubs

Mulching is the coating of the soil with a layer of organic or inorganic material to create favorable conditions for the development of plants (preserving moisture and nutrients in the soil, protecting the roots from overheating, lack of weeds) and increasing the attractiveness of the garden from an aesthetic point of view. It can be carried out both in the greenhouse and on the open ground.

Mulching

The material itself, which is used for this, is called mulch. The use of wood bark as such has several advantages:

• the bark rots and saturates the soil with nutrients;
• lowers the acidity of the soil, which is required for the cultivation of certain plant species;
• the bark behaves like a natural filter for water, preventing the penetration of harmful elements to the roots;
• prevents hardening of the topsoil. It allows to minimize weeding, which is especially important for plants with a superficial root system;
• in its composition it has elements that do not allow diseases like gray rot, fungal infections, rotting of roots to develop;
• allows you to drive a special class of pests out of the surrounding soil - soil nematodes (roundworms). These parasitic organisms are the cause of many diseases in plants;
• Helps extend tree life.

How to chop tree bark at home

For mulching, bark of any breed is used, the only condition is that it should not be alive, because removing bark from them can lead to the death of the plant. Old or destroyed trees should also be avoided. Pests or pathogens can live in them. It is best if trees that are felled less than six months ago are used.

To determine if the bark is suitable for mulching, you need to remove a small piece of bark. If she starred easily, she can be used for mulch.

After removing the bark, it must be crushed so that the size of a single piece does not exceed 5 cm. This can be done either manually using scissors or a pruner, or automated in a garden shredder.

The next step is to sterilize the material. This is done to prevent infection of plants with diseases and pests.

There are two ways:

• boiling in water for 10 minutes;
• heating in the oven for 15-20 minutes. at 70 ° C.

Mulch trees in spring or autumn on fertilized soil. The soil should be dry and warm (especially for spring). Fertilizers can be used both organic - horse or cow manure - and mineral: urea, urea, ammonium nitrate, phosphorus and potassium-containing substances.

After that, you can proceed directly to mulching. The bark is poured with a layer of 2-5 cm, leaving a free space around shrubs of 50 cm, and around trees - 80 cm.

Dressing

When choosing a method for removing stumps from a summer cottage, several factors should be considered at once, such as labor costs, the availability of time and the necessary tools, as well as free access to the rest of the tree. It is also necessary to answer the question of what tasks the removal of the old stump from the territory helps to solve and is it not better to leave it as a decorative element.