Stump Grinding in Cincinnati, OH

Stump grinding turns a stump into a pile of wood chips. A grinder with a toothed wheel works back and forth across the stump and chews it down, usually 6 to 12 inches below the ground, deeper where you plan to plant a new tree or set a patio. The roots below that depth are left to rot slowly, which is normal and, on a Cincinnati hillside, often useful. It is faster and much less disruptive than digging a stump out, and it leaves a spot you can cover with topsoil and seed the same week.

Why bother with an old stump

A stump left in a lawn is a mower hazard and a trip hazard. Some species, such as tree of heaven, black locust and many maples, send up sprouts from the stump and roots for years. Rotting stumps can also draw carpenter ants and fungi. And a stump right where you want a new tree, a fence line or a garage pad has to go one way or another.

Buried lines and Ohio 811

Stumps often sit close to gas lines, water services, buried electric and cable, especially in older neighborhoods where utilities run through the front yard. Before grinding, Ohio811 (Ohio Utilities Protection Service) should be called so the utilities can mark their lines; Cincinnati's own public tree permit requires notice two working days ahead of work. Private lines, like the wire to a garage light or an irrigation system, are not marked by the utility, so tell us about those.

Street tree stumps

If the stump is left from a city street tree in Cincinnati, Urban Forestry's assessment covers routine stump grinding and replacement of removed trees. Report it through 311 before paying anyone to grind it.

Chips, holes and the slope question

Grinding a large stump produces a surprising pile of chips. We can rake them into the hole, leave them for your beds or haul them away. Chips break down and settle, so a hole backfilled with chips will sink; for lawn, it is better to remove most of them and fill with topsoil. On steep slopes, grinding the stump but leaving the deeper roots is usually the right call, because those roots keep holding soil as they slowly decay.