How about a butterfly bush. Not sure how they do in your zone, but they shoot up very very fast - and are easy to trim back if/when need be.

Maybe spirea?

Maybe you should get a chain saw woodcarver to make you a bear or something cool. Think of the stump as a blank canvas.

Butterfly bush are short lived here, if you can get them to overwinter.
Spirea would look leggy since it's not full sun.

Neat idea esox, but the stump is still attached to the other half of the tree. Once the neighbors cut down their half, that stump will be leveled and hopefully ground!

Other suggestions?

This is just an idea, but a buddy of mine plants cannas, I hope thats spelled right. Some of them climb right up to that height as annuals . then he digs more bulbs up every year, replants.. just an idea, and might hide it this year.... I also had an ugly lopped off stump once, sat a big bird bath on it.

Combine bird bath and Cannas? heck you might prefer that to waiting 4-5 years ...

If you could get the top cut flat, you could use it to hold a bird bath and make it a focal point vs. an eyesore.

Rudbeckia Lanciniata would grow tall quickly, if you can find it, but it runs so not sure you'd want to deal with containing it.

Since this sounds like a short-term fix, I'd be inclined to do a big box run and see what was tall, inexpensive and might "work." Would also consider potting something to give it more height if needed. It could always be put in the ground in the winter.

Limelight hydrangeas get tall, and I've had good luck with them blooming in part shade.

elephant ear

I have Soloman's Seal and Ostrich ferns in my garden, both do very well.

Ostrich ferns hide my stump. The only hostas in the ground in this picture are the Komodo Dragons on each side of the ferns. All the hostas in back are in pots raised by bricks.

Gesila

Ostrich ferns get another vote.

Don B.

Is hiding the stump a definate? After looking at Gesila's picture, I think a tall potted plant of some sort sitting on the stump (with the rest of the tree as a backdrop), might be nice...no?

Melissa, you mentioned dwarf goatsbeard, and you may have the same one I do, ' Misty Lace'....even as a small goatsbeard, it is at least 3' high in bloom. I love it because it seems to need nothing from me to thrive.

Another thing that looks great with hosta is Cimicifuga/ Actaea. I have had great growth with Atropurpurea and Brunette. ( also have Hillside Black Beauty, which I don't recommend). The only thing I don't love about it is that like Astilbe, if you slack off on water it lets you know it by getting crispy.

This pic shows how big my MistyLace Aruncus is....there are three of them behind Queen of the seas. I cut the flowers off after they bloom and the foliage is still full and pretty all season.

Half of our lombardy died so had the tree fallers come in to take it down and they left the stump quite high and crooked too . DH sawed it level and hollowed it out in the center. I had a fern growing from it last season but it winter killed and put a bird bath in center of it this season instead . I also have another I stuck a plant in.

This post was edited by almosthooked on Sat, Jun 1, 13 at 23:17

Any chance of a pic and an idea of what hosta are there now? Variegated Solomon's Seal may be tall enough but may clash with the hosta. Ferns will do, but larger ones tend to spread. There are a few conifers that will do well with 4 hours of light, among them Arborvitae, Hemlocks and Hinoki Cypress.

A nearly four foot 'Holmstrup' Arborvitae in similar light and growing quite slow because of it.

Some conifers may elongate in low light but Arbs and Hemlocks tend to stay tight and simply grow slower.

tj