Stump Grinding vs. Stump Removal: Which One Do You Need?

When a tree comes down, the stump stays behind. You can leave it, but it gets in the way of the mower, sends up new shoots and slowly rots into a soft spot in the yard. There are two ways to deal with it, and they're very different jobs.

Stump grinding

A stump grinder is a machine with a spinning cutting wheel that chews the stump down into wood chips, below the level of the grass. The big surface roots around it can be ground down too. The deep roots stay in the ground and break down over time.

Grinding is what most yards need. When it's done, you can fill the spot with soil and plant grass over it, lay sod, or put a flower bed there.

Stump removal

Full removal pulls the stump and the root ball out of the ground, usually with heavy equipment. It leaves a big hole and a lot more disturbed soil. It makes sense when you're building, pouring concrete or setting fence posts right where the stump was.

Which one should you get?

• Planting grass or a flower bed over the spot: grinding.
• Mowing over it and forgetting it was ever there: grinding.
• A slab, a driveway or a building going right on top: ask about removal.
• A fence post landing exactly on the stump: ask about removal or deeper grinding.

What happens to the chips?

Grinding leaves a pile of wood chips and soil. Some people rake it back into the hole to settle, and some want it hauled off. Say which you'd like when you get your estimate.

Have a stump or two in the yard, even old ones from a past removal? Call or text a photo to M&S Tree Service at (361) 548-4857 for a free estimate.