How To Pull Shrubs

[rebapuck]

Need some ideas from you. I have about 12 25-year-old shrubs I want to replace. Those roots are really in there. I'm trying to figure out how to use a winch of some sort. The base point will have to be a tree. Any advice?

[Treeview]

Hi!

I'm an arborist and I've had plenty of experience removing trees and shrubs.

The easiest and most practical way is to cut the canes as low as possible then call to get prices from someone with a stump grinder.

Pulling stumps is:

hard work
can be dangerous
Hard work
You still ahve to dispose of the stump---costly and heavy to get to the dump, even if you can find a dump to take it
hard work

Don't let some yahoo with a 'big' truck try to yank the stump. If you want to see what happens when that happens spend some time on You Tube...full of torn off bumpers, rear-ends and broken chains/straps. Ohhh..and its hard work

I ran a tree care company for 25 years and I've work in the profession my whole life. Most small tree companies don't even have a stump grinder. They sub out the work because it's too costly to have the machine. Stump grinding prices are amazingly cheap considering how much capital is invested.

After the stump is ground you can rake the shaving back into the hole and go on about your summer.

When you talk to contractors be sure to get a current copy of their liability and worker's compensation policy. It will come direcly from their insurer...don't accept their word that 'I have insurance'. Be sure to get an underground utility locate. Its free and required by Federal Law. Call 811 for locates...its free.

Good luck,

Tom

[halfdome, Danny]

I removed a 24 year old Bloodgood Japanese Maple stump last week. I used an axe, spade bit and drill to cut the 6" roots.
I pulled each root out with a heavy chain with hooks with my vehicle.
It took the better part of two days, I'm stubborn, just like the roots .
I kept tension on the chain so I could hear what root was in need of cutting while chopping with the axe.
The main root ball finally came out and I took it to the free yard waste recycle yard.
Now I have a new tree to replace the one that succumbed to last winters ice storm. Danny

[parnold]

If they are indeed bushes, and not trees, they won't be terribly hard. I used a nylon tow strap, and yanked out bushes and roots quite easily with my Subaru. If they are trees, and you value your time, hire an expert!

[rebapuck]

They are indeed bushes. I've kept them at about 2ft high, but the trunks are now about 5" in diameter. They are behind my townhouse and a vehicle cannot get back there. I suppose I'll have to do the back breaking dig 'em out thing. Still might get a winch. They will be replaced with a dwarf variety.

Thanks for the replies.

[Treeview]

There are portable stump grinders. I bought a small one to do shrubs and very small trees. It was light enough for 2 people to lift into a raised planter. It took a while to do the work but I got the job done.

http://www.northerntool.com/shop/tools/ ... pla&ci_kw={keyword}

Check with Home Depot or your local rental shop. If you decide to grind it yourself be sure to wear a proper helmet, safety glasses, faceshield and ear protection.

Since it sounds like you're going to dig and pull here are some tips.

Find a solid anchor to attach the come along. If you're going to use a tree make sure its large. Then, use wide webbing straps and NOT cable or chain. Cable/chain will damage the tree.

Make a double wrap around the shrub stumps. Get it in a place where it won't be pulled over the top.

Leave the stumps high so that you can get some leverage.

Put tension on the stump and then chop the roots. It doesn't take a lot of tension to make cutting roots easier. The come along isn't to rip the stump out it's only to tension the roots for chopping.

I've used my recip/Sawzall with a long, coarse blade to cut roots too.

If you have large trunks you're going to need a heavy duty come along. This style come along with stamped metal sides is not likely to be strong enough to pull without bending the frame:

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_1260 ... 5125831101

This is similar to the one that I used:

http://www.rescuetoolman.com/3_000_lbs_ ... -70030.htm

Don't overload the come along. If a cable breaks someone can get hurt or killed.

Consider the cost, it might be cheaper to have it ground out.

Spending two days digging out a stump??? Whew...not me.

Tom

[halfdome, Danny]

Spending two days digging out a stump??? Whew...not me.

Tom

West facing house on a Cul-De-Sac on a pie shaped lot.
There's only one spot where a deciduous tree will shade the living room from the Summer sun & not block the Winter sun.
Guess where that spot could be??? Yep! The same spot as the old tree was in.
I'm not afraid of hard work if the end result is worth it and it was worth every minute.
Danny

[bonnie]

backhoe works. I was having the water line from the house to the utility hookup replaced. I noticed the workers were being ever so careful around the overgrown and ratty looking bushes I had been trying to kill for 2 years. I mentioned to the foreman, I wouldn't mind if the bushes met a timely end. Cost $20. The stump grinder man murdered the bushes too.

Fun and expensive summer that year.

[CliffinGA]

Well the redneck way is to take a little dynamite and put it at the base of each bush and set them off or use a lil nitro, but the house is barely liveable when you get done . Ofcourse you could also do what I did to clear out the bushes behind my house and I called a guy that I found on CL that had listing that was "Have Bobcat and need work". He charged by the hour and it ran $75 an hour and he took 3 hrs and I paid him an extra $50 to haul the debris away. That was 6yrs ago and it may cost more now!

Cliff

[logman7777]

I used a Sawsall and some 12" Demolition blades to eradicate some 40 YO bushes in front of my neighbors house.

Just keep cutting/digging till there isnt anything left. Easier than pulling em out too..

[Forrest747]

I have pulled bushes with my jeep winch. I also did the sawzall blade for another set. I also had the same issue with not able to get back there and used a comealong

[rebapuck]

Well, I got out today and dug up the first one. Fortunately the roots went out and not so much down. I kept plunging an old pruner into the earth and snipping.

I hope the rest come out the same. Then I have to replant.

[niget2002]

Call me crazy, but the last time I had to do this, I used the sawsall to cut the bushes down, then used burning coals to burn the stump down below ground level... covered with dirt and ignored they were there. After a year or two, the roots rotted away.

[Treeview]

YOu may be crazy...I dunno...

Burning out a stump might work...be careful though. Depending on soil type and how much organic litter might be around you could start a groundfire and let it get out of control.

The shrub stumps would likely have rotted away in a couple of years anyway.

Tom

[Alan Wood]

One of the very nice things about sawzalls is that you can replace the blade for at worst a couple of dollars and everything else is protected from the results of cutting a root still in the dirt. So for such situations just find the root cut it and move on!