"Bill" wrote

Me, I'm lazy. I like a come-along and something sturdy to which to to
attach it.

My brother in-law never cut down a tree. Just dug it out. I'm a
come-along owner but he just dug and used the weight to act as a lever
and popped it out. I thought a lot of work but no stump and it does not
have to be done the same day. If I look at the lack of a chain saw,
fuel, maintenance etc it sort of makes sense, This on about 30 trees
over 20 years. Slow and steady won the cheapness race.
Granted not everyone has the time but still a viable option in you
have a vision of what you would like in the future. The word is
envision and the scale can be grandiose or subtle.

Bill Waxing

I can't imagine if they could be dug out and weren't first cut down to a
stump they were much of a tree.