What to do with your left-over mulch pile from stump removal.
Well it’s easy just dump any left over mulch in your least favorite neighbor’s yard. We all know which neighbor this would be. Just be quiet, do it at night or while they are on vacation. No one will ever know or find out. Don’t worry I won’t tell on you. Wait, I’m just kidding, don’t do that, it’s not very nice. Keep on reading for ideas on what to do for real.
Every stump removal job where the stump is removed by a stump grinder there will be small cuttings of wood from the stump left over after stump is ground away. The cutting size can vary from fine cuts to long shavings. This mulch pile from stump grinding is usually a mixture of soil and stump cuttings.
The size of the pile of mulch left over after a stump grind varies with the size of stump that was removed. For a stump smaller than 1 foot in diameter there probably won’t be much mulch to manage at all. Most small stumps do not require chip removal, they usually just mix in with soil and won’t be noticed that much after the job is complete.
For larger stumps there will be a mulch pile of wood cuttings left over from stump removal. Here are the most common options on what to do with them.
You can hire a landscaper or a stump removal company to haul them away. This is the least used, most expensive option by far. By the time customer pays for cleanup labor, another trip for contractor to drive to disposal site and disposal fee it is usually be as much if not more cost than stump grinding removal cost. After the new topsoil is hauled back in and area is re-seeded with grass it can be twice as much as the stump removal just to have these things done. It’s best, if possible that you do these tasks yourself or find a friend or family member that can. This will cut the total cost of stump removal, chip removal, soil replacement and re-seed by about 70%. And on top of tremendous cost savings, you get to spend time outside and get a little exercise. Most customers enjoy this type of work.
You can remove chips, replace with new soil and re-plant-seed yourself. This is a common option chosen by stump removal customers. This does not require specialized knowledge or equipment for the customer to do and customer normally has tools required on hand to do the job. Items needed for this project are a tined mulch scoop, a garden rake, lawn and leaf bags, spare trash can, leaf blower, soil tamper tool and wheelbarrow are nice, but not required.
Here is how to dispose of stump removal mulch, regrade and re-seed in 5 easy steps.
Step 1
Line trash can with leaf mulch bag and tip over on the ground off to the side of mulch pile.
Step 2
Create a pile of mulch in front of the mouth of the lined trash can and scoop, rake or just push mulch in the can until about ½ to ¾ full. Make sure not to overfill and make the bag tear open or be too heavy to transport. Tip trash/garbage can upright and tie bag at top.
Step 3
Find out if your local city can come out to pick up mulch at the roadside. If the city won’t take the mulch load up search for “mulch disposal near me” on google and you should be able to find a disposal site to take mulch to. Sometime friends or family you may know can use the mulch. Ask around.
Step 4
Get some topsoil at local home a garden store and fill stump removal area up to slight mound as soil will settle quite a bit over time. Pack down with your feet or soil tamper tool.
Step 5
Purchase a starter seed mixture for the type of area the stump removal was at. For example: choose shade seed starter mix if area is in the shade, if the area is in full sun choose sunny grass seed mixture etc. If the area is a slope an application of straw or other material may be needed to keep seed from washing away. Another option is to just use sod in the area.
Now you are done. Make sure the area gets plenty of water and (depending on the time of year) in about a month you’ll have new grass in the area. Steps 4 and 5 may need to be repeated in following years depending on how much the soil settles.
Option 3 is just to let the mulch pile degrade on its own, which can take 1-2 years. The mulch stump grindings will not grow grass well while decomposing. The mulch pile will also settle very quickly and may settle a lot depending on size of pile left over from the job. You can speed up both settling and decomposition rate of stump grinding mulch pile by quite a bit.
Here is how: First, form multiple holes that run as deep as possible through mulch pipe to fill with water and to add air circulation. Second, keep the mulch pile soaked by filling with water every 4-5 days. Re-pack down area once a week and repeat this process until area is of desired height. Adding a little Nitrogen fertilizer to wood chips will also help degrade to usable fertile area for grass faster.
Here is a miscellaneous list of less common things you can do with stump removal chips. You can use them for pathways to gardens, outbuildings, etc, the chips can be used for animal bedding and might even help block pig smells, chips can be put aside and used as compost after the pile completely degrades, and if you have other ideas on what to do with the wood chips, please let us know by commenting on this post. Here is a great YouTube video I found that covers wood chip usage and composting in depth https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhBvEG_Pg8Y
What NOT to do with left over chips from stump removal
Don’t mix compost in the soil in areas where you want to grow anything. When fresh wood chips are mixed in with the soil the degradation of the wood robs nitrogen from the soil. Plants need Nitrogen to grow well. There might not be much nitrogen robbed from the soil if the wood mulch is just left on the surface of the ground and not mixed in the soil. This means you might be able to place the fresh stump grinding mulch around plants you would like to grow if you want to take a bit of chance.
Don’t put the mulch chips up next to your house. Mulch from the home and garden store is normally treated for Termites. Stump removal mulch will not be treated for Termites. Rotting, degrading wood is a Termite attractant. You don’t want to attract Termites close to your house where they may be just a hop, skip and jump away from entering your home.
Don’t store or move chips in a storage area that can rust or corrode such as a truck bed or metal container. The chips store moisture and the rotting process is highly corrosive.
Don’t move chips to storm drain areas where they can clog proper drainage.
In conclusion, getting rid or making use of left over mulch piles from stump grinding usually isn’t much of hassle for customers. The thought of what to do with left over mulch chips no longer needs to be daunting for the customer. For some it may even be an enjoyable way to spend some time outdoors in the sun and get some well needed exercise. Enjoy your new, better-looking yard. What method did you choose to get rid of your mulch pile and how did it work? We would like to know.
