A Gardeners Forum Forums Members History Forum Life 2007 About that stubborn old stump . . .

You will recall when the season closed in 2k5, Jeff and I were still battling with the stump of that diseased austrian pine.

Well, we covered it up for the winter. I started up on it again today - only 2 celsius with no wind or rain and going up to 4 or so today.

Tomorrow, they've promised 9 celsius (which is pretty good for January in southern Ontario).

I'm more or less digging everything away from it, hawking out the frozen dirt . . .

I got an MP3 player - I know, I've been talking of nothing but . . . while I'm listening to my books on tape, I figure I can work on that stump.

Why am I in such a rush? Well, on the 21st or 22nd of March, whenever equinox kicks in, I have some juniper clippings I've been raising on the table garden.

They've taken! I know they must have because they have stayed green all winter.

As soon as I have that fussbudgetin' son-of-a-bee-hive-syrup-can outta' there, I intend to put in some fresh organic soil and cover it up.

Then come the first day of spring! Voila! In go my juniper plants.

Working on this now means I'll have the toughest job out of the way when it's time to start.

(I'll betcha' somebody will get it out for me before then though - we know who that is . . . heh! heh!)

And Simon - one of our tenants who is a he-who-knows-all from way back, is planning on a little maverick gardening, methinks ... I won't be surprised to find he's been out there in the early morning with his trusty tools. He does things like that then stands around and goes 'Who me?'

I'd prefer to do it myself though.

:-)

What I need to know is this . . . if I cannot cut the roots of this stump, I shall resort to salt.

I will just dig out all around it, then pour in salt.

How long would the salt have to be there before it rotted it out?

Won't salt ruin the soil?

If you could get the stump to start decaying you would have a great spot for ferns and hostas, really anything that like soil that retains water.

What I would do is burn it out. Use something old corn oil and a bag of cheap charcoal.

Pour the charcoal and corn oil around the base and over the top and lit it.

I have removed 2 stumps in my yard way. If it is rotten enough it way burn a portion of the roots out as well.

I have one more stump to burn this year as soon as the burn ban is off.

You could contact some Middle-East terroroists. I'm sure they would have a small thermonuclear device they could give you if all else fails.

Well Bin Laden is trying to make a deal with the U. S. He says if they back off Afghanistan and Iraq he'll leave the U. S. alone.

Yeah - sure . . . what's he gonna' want after that - the state of Kentucky and the Province of Alberta?

Ha ha!

I worked on the stump today - I got quite a bit of it cut away - I'm just going for it's fat little legs right now - I was going to spend the rest of the afternoon out there, but it's getting a bit windy and looks like rain.

Not to mention that I'm now wearing Ben Gay for Arthritis on my neck and shoulders . . . heh! heh!

I went for a good 3 to 4 hours, cutting and digging. I swore I'd have it out by the end of the day but it's not to be.

Awwwwww . . . I'd like to hold off on the salt - our soil is difficult as it is.

I like that idea about burning it, but somebody's likely to report it - we're not supposed to burn things.

What about that compost starter stuff. That's suppose to speed up the rotting process. Or should I say decaying process. That might be worth a try if you wanted to make a home for some ferns, mushrooms and other plants that like stumps.

Then what am I gonna' do with my juniper clippings? That's what I want to put there.

Hey! Told ya' - I'm as stubborn as that stump.

Thanks to Ben Gay & Tylenol for Arthritis, my bones are no longer screaming after the session with the stump.

It's now raining, so the stump is safe.