We have had success with removing stumps with epsom salt.
Good luck!

Here is a link that might be useful: Ehow: how to mix epsom salt to kill stumps

When we had the ash tree cut down the fellow told us to use diesel fuel. I almost had a stroke.

We drilled some deep holes in a big hackberry stump and poured that commercial stump killer into them. I think that protects the surrounding plants, nothing else died but the stump did. Hackberries will keep putting out tough woody sprouts from the roots indefinitely otherwise making an ugly bush. It also worked on a big mulberry tree ages ago. I had a large old crepe myrtle dug out last year and some of the big roots were left. These keep sending up dense clusters of sprouts too but they are weak and spindly so I just keep scraping them out with my trowel hoping the thing will finally give up.

An amateur, but affordable, tree trimming guy suggested diesel fuel to us too. We had hired him to do the yearly trim of some overhanging branches from the neighbors volunteer neglected tree that is right on the property line close to our house. He was referring to doing it in the big roots of a live tree and covertly "getting rid of the problem". I have to admit I was tempted and still think about it.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I have Lady Banks and hardy hibiscus that would be affected should the "cure" leach out into their space. Not so sure about the diesel fuel, but maybe the stump killer. Will definitely read on the label what it says about surrounding plants. Kathy, I take it you did NOT use the diesel fuel????

If there are green sprouts and they are growing, why not use roundup? Perhaps in a bucket with a lid and a hole in it just big enough for some long sprouts to take a good long drink?

I'd be very tempted to use Roundup or a broad leaf killer also, but it depends on how far away the other plants are. The idea has been debated on the rose forums, but Roundup has been strongly suspected of affecting plants other than the one it has been used on if their roots are close.

I did similar to Cynthia with a wild grapevine that was living and overtaking some indian hawthorn shrubs. I poured RU in a soda bottle and threaded some of the vine, leaves and all into the bottle and propped it up so it wouldn't fall over on anything. That vine soaked it all up and died. :) But it wasn't over night. Took a few weeks.

Once it was dead I was able to pull it out of the bushes and and cut it off down at the base. This was done last summer and so far, it hasn't come back.

At the same time I also painted RU on the leaves of trash tree sprouts that were too big to pull or dig out. I used a sponge paint brush. Once they died, I snipped them down at the ground level. Problem solved with little physical effort.
Those trees haven't come back either...

but Its about time for me to make another round of the yard working on this season's trash tree sprouts and a crepe myrtle that is insisting on living even though I dug it out 2 years ago! GRRRR. I hated that little thing being planted where it was.. totally didn't make any sense to me why it was placed where it was.

Carrie,
I wouldn't hesitate to try this on your wisteria. Take some of the longer stems and thread them into a water bottle or similar with RU in it. I don't know if that would be enough to finish off a wisteria or not.

For good measure I'd also drill holes in the stump and pour some in those holes. (either RU or Stump killer)

Just be sure you don't let anything leach out.. treat the stump and saplings only.

melvalena, Thats a bummer about the crepe myrtle report in your post. 2 years? Its still trying?

I want it DEAD.

The thing was one of those big common old fashioned pink kinds that had been crepe murdered many times, planted right by the driveway where I get into the passenger seat and it would slap me in the face or hair which was especially nice when it had rained and it always got white mildew on it and the blooms were not what you'd call "abundant" or "early". It was originally planted in the neighbors yard but half of the ugliness was on our side so it was a question of whose ugly myrtle is it anyway? I had to get permission to take it out.

GreatPlains1, mine was one of those little shrub ones planted in a tree well... beats the heck outa me why it was stuck there. No rhyme or reason to its placement.

I got in there early in the spring 2 years ago and dug it out.. got as much roots as possible. I knew it would be a long slow death..and I'd battle it for a while. I haven't been very aggressive with it though. The lady in red salvia I got from Carrie tends to cover up what's struggling to live and I don't think about it when I have the RU out.. usually its when I'm pulling into the drive way from the other direction...(not often) when I see it and by the time I'm in the garage I've already forgotten about it!

So I have to make an appt to see to it that this year it dies. :)

We had similar ones planted in a row in front of our front porch at the old house. It took a while but eventually they quit trying to live. :)

Good, that means there's hope after all.

We already plunked down $150 to get it taken out, the thing was huge but had died down to the ground a couple times over the years and regrown anew.....just imagine the beauty at the the base of it. It put a scar on the driveway when the guy hooked it up to his truck to pry its ugly butt out of there and he broke his chain saw because part of it was growing slap up against the big metal post to a chain link fence.

Plus, I got guilted big time by the neighbor guy who had since moved and now rents the place because "My dad planted that crepe myrtle" and he had to "sleep on it for a couple weeks" before giving his consent to "let us pay" to take it out. That made me feel pretty awkward but at least finally answered the "Who's crepe is it" question. It wasn't hitting him over the head every time he had to squeeze in around it to get into his car which might have made him a little less teary eyed about it.

I really miss it, can you tell?

Ha, I just cut the sprouts back, but it won't take them long to be back where I can try the RU...............I will also read on the stump killer solution package to see if it is safe enough to use................between the two of them, MAYBE I can rid my garden of this "thing" !!
Thanks, everyone !!!!

I bought the RU in the new sprayer that is really easy to use, no pumping and it goes right where I want it. But this is the grass killer. Sooo, since I had some of the concentrate, I added it later and used it on a trumpet vine. Yes, THAT trumpet. It allowed me to get it on many leaves and on the green on the stems.

It is slowly going.....but it is going. It laughed at the grass killer. I do not have any other plants that I want to keep with roots near by. BTW, this combination RU did a great job on wild morning glory too.

I felt the diesel fuel would be toxic in the soil. I don't know, but it did not sound environmentally safe.
I do remember my uncle using something to burn out stumps of trees. I assume the fire consumed the fuel and it did not leech into the soil.
Diane drilled holes and used stump killer in the stump. It has been several months and it has not sprouted any where in the yard. This fall I plan to redo the cobble path and hope to be able to dig/cut/hammer the roots near the patio.

We've had decent results painting undiluted Roundup concentrate (~18% glyphosate) directly onto the fresh cut stumps of trumpet vine, bamboo, and other declining or unwanted shrubs. For much larger sugarberry and mulberry, we painted around the outer edge and poured some into holes drilled for a later application of stump remover. "Stump Killer" is about 32% glyphosate, so essentially RU on steroids.

This is basically the approach recommended by the Scotts (RU) and stump remover product folks. Concern about damage to adjacent plants via interconnecting roots is valid and mentioned by Scotts at the following link; know this could be a concern for an oak stump among other oak trees, but not sure that this sort of root involvement applies to wisteria among other shrubs/flowers.

Stump removal products (Potassium Nitrate/Sodium Metabisulfite) don't claim to able to kill the stumps, but did seem to greatly reduce sprouting the few times we've used them without glyphosate. These accelerate decomp and enable the stump to absorb kerosene or other fuel oil for burning (if desired). Don't think I'd use diesel as an herbicide in the garden unless it was going to be burned away within the stump.

Here is a link that might be useful: Killing stumps with RU and warning

This post was edited by bostedo on Wed, Jul 24, 13 at 14:10

Carrie,

I wanted to add a note. The adjacent plants to the offending stump we killed off were rugged plants, nothing valuable. Read that label carefully since you have valuable plants nearby. You might want to do it when you have absolutely no forecast of rain for some time to come to insure the chemicals in the holes don't get splashed or leached out. I would consider covering it in black plastic to keep any hose water or sprinkler from splashing on it too if that is a possibility. We are having an unusually rainy summer here where I live after two years of intense drought.

If the trunk is large enough you can drill a hole large enough to put a piece of PVC pipe into the hole and fill it with stump killer. If not you could use a gallon ziplock bag poke as much of the top leaves into the bag and pour in some stump killer and close the bag. I understand the plant will drink itself to death as long you make sure it never goes dry.

My concern is that the roots of this thing seem to be everywhere as sprouts are popping up even in my hibiscus, and if the RU reaches that far, it would then kill my hibiscus What to do, what to do !!!!

How close is that stuff growing together and how big is the stump of the wisteria? Is it something that can be dug out? I am wondering if you can wait it out until everything goes dormant and then dig out the area in late winter while the hibiscus is dormant and then replant the hibiscus.

In the instance of the crepe myrtle for example, if I keep removing the new growth off remaining roots, I believe this thing will finally give up from lack of photosynthesis. Maybe the wisteria would be the same way once the main stump is gone?

These thoughts have crossed my mind as well. Most of the hibiscus are much too large to be dug, and of course the Lady Banks ..........NEVER. Should I decide to get rid of them, I will definitely use the RU. I am thinking I will just keep cutting the sprouts until winter and dig the main stump out (if this is possible), and then be vigilant at keeping the roots cut. Sounds like more work than I really have time for, but maybe necessary.
Thanks again, everyone, for all your suggestions.............some good ones here and I will keep this thread to refer back to.

An organic method of removing the stump would be to take whatever old jams or jellies or preserves that you have in the fridge or pantry and want to get rid of, drill holes into the stump and fill the holes with the sugar-filled stuff. I think you then cover it with mulch and keep it damp. The sugar feeds the microbes that decompose the stump.

When we've done before is build a charcoal fire on the stump, but that won't work in your case.

I've taken out four crepe myrtles, one was in a place where there was no grass, so I poured the soapy water with bleach (from washing out the cat litter boxes) over the stump area. THAT worked, but would also kill anything near it. The other three were in a row in the grass. I kept pulling the sprouts up whenever I saw them. It took FOREVER (more than 2 years) but eventually worked...and each time there were fewer sprouts.