I had dug out around the stump to the roots and cut the two biggest roots I could reach, discovering that a few inches beyond the cuts, the root was crumbled.
Still, the stump was far too large and heavy for me. I could do nothing further myself.
Our mow-blow guy agreed to cut out as much of the stump as he safely could and haul the chunks off, since I thought the stump was still too well anchored to remove completely. However the first thing he did was to rock the stump a bit, and it popped loose immediately. The roots were completely rotted. The whole stump can come out.
He cut off the top half of the stump and hauled it away and he's going to get the rest of it removed this week. Yay! After after all that I sat under the nearby pergola and stared at a Metrosideros excelsa that's growing a lot bigger and a lot faster than I thought it would ever do. One stump out of the garden, but another lurks in the future--hopefully not my future.
Now to the hedge. Planted from one gallon pots at the end of August, 2012:
End of April, 2013:
Some of the hedge branches are now over five feet (1.5 M) tall. I trimmed off every flower cluster that appeared this spring to force energy into growth instead of bloom. I tipped each plant back as well, to encourage branching and dense foliage. I think it's done well in nine months. It gets two minutes of drip irrigation three times per week. Plain green shrubs ain't so bad.
Don't you hate dealing with stumps but it's such a happy time when they are gone! I remember when you planted your hedge and it's looking great. Plain green is good
ReplyDeleteThanks Deanne. I hate stumps so much we planted very few trees, and small ones only.
DeleteThat must be a big relief not to have it sitting there any more.
ReplyDeleteIt was right in a prime spot. I am celebrating!
DeleteFinally after all of your hard work the stump will be gone.
ReplyDeleteThe hedge looks wonderful, green foliage in its many shapes can be beautiful, green in all of its shades is such a pleasant and soothing, flowers are a double bonus.
xoxoxo ♡
I'm learning to appreciate plain deep green. It took a while!
DeleteGood news on the stump! In the future, leave a taller trunk -- you can use that for leverage when trying to loosen the roots.
ReplyDeleteTwo minutes of drip irrigation? How much water is that per plant? I've always heard that it was better to soak longer fewer times in order to soak the soil more deeply and encourage deep roots. Results in better drought tolerance later in life.
The stump was 6' tall, plenty tall; I just don't have enough strength. :(
DeleteThat's about two gallons per plant per week. I'm going to up it another minute soon because they are larger now. I'm reading back and forth different studies about soak infrequently vs. light and frequent, apparently it's being reconsidered.
Congrats on the stump removal. Your hedge is making good progress.
ReplyDeleteI'm so happy it's ridiculous. It's ridiculous what makes gardeners happy, isn't it?
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