Hi Jo,

Found this article that may help answer your question.

Viva Guacamole!
Don B.

Here is a link that might be useful: Feeling Stumped? Link

Jo how close does Ken live near you? I know of his fondness for 'Kill the Maple'. I got rid of a pine tree this year and have never been happier. Enjoy the space, Paula

ha!!!!!

that tree is NOT dead...

and with no insult to the roots ... will be.. my guess.. 6 to 9 feet tall by next fall .. if the city doesnt get around to it ...

presuming, of course.. its not some tiny foo foo dwarf maple ...

nope.. wont kill it at all ..

send me ten bucks if you want to know how to kill it first.. lol..

ken

ps: just kidding ... its secret knowledge.. and the maple haters will throw me out of the club if i share the wisdom with you ... lol

Make sure the city guys grind out the stump deep enough. They should also grind away some of the larger surface roots while they are at it. I would talk to them that you would like to garden there, and for you yanking out those roots would be very heavy work, and they have this grinder right there.

So is this good riddance or oh, no, my hostas will fry?

We have a friend who had a series of cars crash through the fence and into his yard. He was worried about damage to his kids and finally "landscaped" with gigantic boulders. The next guy hit the boulders, tried to sue - and got laughed out of court.

know how many city guys it takes to grind a stump?

two, if you grind 'em up real slow ....

Don't know nuthin about grinding out maple trees. However, we've taken down 5 tall pines and 2 sweetgum trees here. And then we had 5 of the resulting stumps ground down. We kept the resulting huge pile of chips. One I had cut tall (a nice pine was left 20 feet tall for the woodpeckers) and it now has jasmine and Virginia creeper all the way to the top and it is a wild bird resource par excellence. One that I left alone after it was cut was a sweet gum stump, the one which had caused the original cement block garage to crack apart. The roots on THAT one were as big around as a large man's waist. This winter my DH got the chain saw to it and removed the tall portion of the 4 foot high stump, leaving just enough for me to set a large flower pot on it for a shade-loving bromeliad. That will serve for another couple of years until it rots all the way to the ground. Some of the roots are rotting and leaving depressions in the surrounding area, so we are periodically adding more and better soil to that east bed behind my Teahouse. I did not have that stump ground down because at the time it was on our neighbor's land......and she was kind enough to let us remove the tree when we rebuilt the old garage for a princely sum, and turned it into my Teahouse studio. Now, of course, we own that small strip of land and it is my hosta garden, the Back40.

If you are blessed to have the CITY remove the stump, let them do it. They will be responsible for any damage to underground utilities, not you. Plus, if it is in the right-of-way, they are the only ones who should do it.

And, if you are a "perfect lawn" sort of person, with a desire to have a smooth front lawn, then encourage them to remove some roots. But if it were me, I'd not want them disturbing any more land than necessary......unless you are wanting the front LAWN destroyed to make room for (wait for it)....MORE HOSTA.

I do not know if they are hardy up in Ontario, but in Louisiana, on I-10 between Lafayette and the Texas border, they use a clumping grass in the highway medians to stop cars. It is lovely pampas grass, but of course it is not friendly to walking traffic or vehicles either. It will stop them dead in their tracks, and also provide shelter for vermin and snakes. But those big plumes look great.

If it gets a lot more sun without that maple, try some gold hosta there. Maybe a huge S&S and Squash Casserole and Dawns Early Light and Key West....

"If it gets a lot more sun without that maple, try some gold hosta there. Maybe a huge S&S and Squash Casserole and Dawns Early Light and Key West...."

See what Mocc did there, Jo? That's good work right there, Mocc. ; )

Don B.

Hello! I'm sorry folks, I've been away and couldn't get back to this post till now.....

Guacamole Don! I read your article and boy, am i relieved the tree belongs to the city... We don't have a sidewalk on this side of the street so I have more garden space, yay!

My dilemma is this: should the tree be replaced? The workers that came to remove the tree said that perhaps if I didn't want it replaced I should let the city know in early spring, seeing as the two properties are so close, as were the two trees. I'm guessing the replacement would be another maple ...er......no thank you. Still pondering, however...

Paula....LOL re your comment on Ken....funny! I really think I'll enjoy the extra sunlight on that part of the garden...but might have to relocate my gorgeous 'Brunette' cimicifuga...the maple did provide some shade for it...don't want it to fry.:-(

Ken....you crack me up!...."some tiny foo foo dwarf maple" ... No foo foos here, my friend....it was the large type maple - it was actually beautifully formed ( I did a bit of pruning here and there ) and even the City crew said so this summer when they came to prune a large branch - in order for drivers to see stop sign ahead. I regret losing its esthetic appeal and shade but won't regret losing roots in the garden.

Ken, I'm gonna use the $10 I would have paid you to get more hosta if it's all the same to you..lol

Bernd...I like the way you think! That would work, wouldn't it? Lol. I actually do garden under that tree...tried hosta too but too many roots...as it is, I will have to remove the existing plants before they come in the spring to drill the stump. As you suggested, I will ask nicely if they could get rid of some of the roots nearby while they're at it....bake some cookies...offer iced water (beer would be too obvious!)

MadPlanter....you hit the nail on the head! my hosta will fry with absolutely no shade...but wait....I hear Mocc coming up with some super ideas...
I'm glad your friend found a way to deter car crashes onto his property by using boulders. What a nightmare that must have been for them.

Bragg/Dave...how did you know? Nyuck nyuck...:-).

Mocc...ooh, you naughty girl! That's some serious enabling - I just happen to have a Sum and Substance that would go great in that bed now that the maple has gone bye bye. As for the other suggestions, I think they are great choices and I thank you for that...it saves me time trying to figure out what would do well in full sun. Will let you know in the spring what I've added. What a great idea also to use the resulting wood chips in the garden as a mulch or worked into the soil as an amendment. I'll remember to do that. :-)
Pampas grass is architecturally beautiful in the landscape...they even have seeds for pink pampas! I've grown the white one years past..have a Karl Foerster, Shenandoah, and Japanese blood grass growing out in the front. The KF grass still has the seed heads visible over the tall snow-mound.

GuacDon...she's (Mocc) GOOD isn't she? Smooth as a freight train! LOL
We know I'll take the bait. Hee hee hee...

Here's the only pic I have of the maple.