Tree Removal To Protect Your Property From Bush Fires
If you have trees growing on your land, you may find that you have to go through tree lopping removal from time to time due to storm damage or disease. Large trees are best removed by a professional tree services contractor, but you can tackle smaller ones yourself. Once you've removed the tree, you'll be left with the stump.
One effective method of stump removal is treatment with chemicals. Here's a brief overview of what's involved.
How to apply stump removal treatments
You can find a wide selection of tree stump removal products in your local DIY store, many of which are specific to different species of tree. If the treatment is to be effective, you'll need to use the right one so always ask in-store for guidance before making your purchase.
There are several different methods of application recommended by chemical treatment manufacturers, depending on the product.
- treating the whole cut surface of the stump by brushing it with the chemical
- making incisions into the edge of the stump with an axe and applying the treatment into them
- drilling holes into the edge of the exposed stump and injecting the chemicals into them
- applying the chemical directly to the stump, concentrating it in the outer ring of live tissue just beneath the bark
Before beginning to treat the stump, it's advisable to put on protective gloves, goggles and a face mask to protect you from the chemical. Never work with chemicals outdoors on a very windy day when the risk of exposure is increased.
In all cases, the most effective time to apply stump removal treatments is from the autumn through the winter months. Treatment tends to be less successful in the spring when the tree sap begins to rise.
The sooner you can apply the treatment to the tree stump the better, as live tissue will mean better absorption of the chemicals. If the stump is only a month or less old, you can expose a suitable area of tissue by slicing off a few centimetres from the top surface if necessary. You can speed up the effectiveness of the treatment by covering the whole exposed part of the stump with a tarpaulin to keep out rainwater, which could dilute the chemical and slow down the process.
The chemicals work by killing off the tissues inside the stump and working their way right down into the tree's root system until the whole organism is dead. Gradually, the dead stump will rot away until it is consumed by the soil.
If you don't fancy the hard labour of digging up an old tree stump and its incumbent root system, you could opt to remove it using chemical treatments, as described in the overview above. However, if you need the stump taken out quickly, have a chat with your local tree services contractor who will be able to do the job for you.