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#17
30-11-2003, 09:42 AM
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Burning out tree roots
In message , John Towill
writes On Sat, 29 Nov 2003 11:50:25 GMT, Jaques d'Alltrades wrote: The message from (P Verstege) contains these words: What did work was to excavate around the stump and then drill numerous holes through the stump as far sown as possible. Then I snapped it off and filled in the hole. a Lot of work and only a small stump. But what if Iwant to plant another tree there? Will the rotted (rotting?) roots kill off any new roots? That's why I was thinking of burning them out - so I can clear the ground for something else No, but it might attract honey fungus. If you are unlucky. Mine attracted an inedible but large fruiting fungus that eventually weakened the stump enough to get it out without easy access. However, it wasn't quick and took the best part of a decade to work! If you want to plant something soon, don't use sulphuric acid on the stump. Otherwise you can drill some deep holes into the wood and pour in battery acid, and that will reduce the stump to (eventually) carbon, but to a brittle mass fairly quickly. Next time, take most of the branches off a tree you want out, cut round the roots and attach a rope to as near the top as possible (taking into consideration the strength of the trunk there) and using the height of the tree as a lever, pull it over. Then you'll have a rootball from which you can dig/crowbar/pickaxe the earth from it. I have never tried this but beleive that you drill a number of holes as large and deep as practical into the stump. Fill these holes with saltpetre in solution, repeat this filling for a number of times. Then built a small fire over the stump. The saltpetre absorbed into the stump will cause it to burn well. It won't burn particularly well, but if you can get it loaded with enough potassium nitrate and alight it will continue to smoulder if it ever gets dry enough. I tried this with an old dead 2' diameter pear tree stump about a decade ago. The effect was that it would not burn because ground was far too wet even on the driest summer days. However it did accelerate fungal decay. I finally removed the stump by digging it out this year after the fungi had weakened it sufficiently. Even then it required several heavy scaffold poles to lever the stump out. Perhaps someone who reads this will have tried and can say if or not it is practical. Fill the holes with dry saltpetre - no point adding any more water than is absolutely necessary. There is usually far too much water in the wood to get anything embedded in the ground to burn. A pine tree might be willing to go more easily with its resinous sap. Regards, -- Martin Brown |
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