Should You Remove the Stump Too? Why Stump Grinding Is Worth It After Tree Removal in Michigan
Updated September 7, 2026 · Written by Rob Burgund, ISA Certified Arborist MI-4857A
- ISA Certified Arborist MI-4857A
- Working in Oakland County since 2013
- Licensed and insured
- 5.0 stars from 15 Google reviews
Written by Rob Burgund
ISA Certified Arborist · MI-4857A
Rob owns Tree Pros, LLC in Bloomfield Township and is the arborist who quotes and works every job. He has been doing tree work in Oakland County since 2013. More about Rob and Tree Pros, or verify the certification in ISA’s public directory.
What a stump does to a yard
A stump is a trip hazard and a mowing obstacle from the first day. Under leaves or snow it disappears, which is when people fall over it.
As it rots it becomes a home for carpenter ants and for the decay fungi that can move on to healthy trees nearby.
A few species, tree of heaven, black locust, poplar and sassafras among them, keep sending suckers up through the lawn for years, sometimes well away from the old trunk. Most trees, silver maple included, only sprout from the stump itself, and grinding it out ends that.
Why the same day is the right day
If the grinder is on site for the removal, the stump is one more hour of work. Call anyone back later, us included, and you are paying for a second trip. Michigan weather adds a second reason: a job booked in one visit does not get bumped by the next week of rain.
Our stump grinding page has the full price breakdown and what changes it. Our tree removal page shows how the two jobs fit together.
Grinding or digging it out?
Grinding takes the stump 6 to 12 inches below grade and leaves the roots to decay in place. That is the right answer for lawn, garden beds, and planting a new tree a few feet away.
Full excavation removes the whole root plate for $400 to $1,000 or more. You only need it when a patio, a fence post, or a replacement tree is going in the exact same spot.
Planting again after a stump
Do not put a new tree in the same hole right away. The buried grindings tie up nitrogen as they break down, right where new roots would need it. Iowa State University’s extension service suggests planting at least three feet away, ideally six to eight. If you lost an ash to emerald ash borer, our EAB guide lists what to plant instead.
What happens to the chips
A ground stump leaves behind a pile of wood chips and soil roughly equal in size to the stump itself, sometimes more with a large hardwood. Those chips have three practical uses. Spread two to three inches over a garden bed, they work fine as mulch, keeping the chips themselves a few inches back from the base of any living plant so they do not hold moisture against the stem. Left in a pile, they break down into decent compost over a year or two. If you would rather not deal with them at all, most municipal yard-waste programs in Oakland County accept wood chips, or they can be bagged and hauled to a drop-off site. Ask before the grinding starts which option you want, since it changes how the crew leaves the site.
What the grinder cannot get near
A stump grinder is a wheel of carbide teeth spinning fast enough to chew through hardwood, which means it also chews through anything else in its path. Before scheduling, walk the area around the stump and flag anything buried nearby: sprinkler lines, invisible dog fence wire, a septic field, or a shallow gas or electric line. Call Miss Dig 811 before any stump grinding, the same as before digging a fence post, since utility locates are free and a damaged line is not. A grinder can usually work within a foot or so of a flagged line by hand-guiding the head more carefully, but it needs to know the line is there first.
Grinding near a foundation, patio or driveway
Stumps close to a structure need a shallower, more careful grind rather than a skip. Roots that have grown under a patio slab or driveway edge are usually left in place rather than chased, since digging them out risks undermining what is sitting on top. The visible stump comes out; the root system is left to decay naturally underground over the following years, which is normal and does not threaten the structure once the stump itself is gone.
Frequently asked questions
How long does it take for a ground stump to fully decay?
The visible stump is gone the day it is ground, but the root system underground takes years to break down completely, often five to ten depending on species and soil moisture. That is normal and is why grinding, rather than full excavation, is the standard answer for a stump that is simply in the way of a lawn or a garden bed. The decaying roots do not pose a safety issue; they are below grade and no longer supporting any weight.
Will new shoots keep coming up after grinding?
For most species, no. Grinding removes the growing point the tree would use to resprout. A handful of species, tree of heaven, black locust, poplar and sassafras among them, can still send up suckers from roots well away from the original stump, sometimes years later, because those roots can generate new shoots on their own. If you had one of those species removed, expect to clip the occasional root sucker in the lawn for a season or two.
Can I grind a stump myself with a rented machine?
You can, and rental stump grinders are available at most equipment rental yards. The tradeoffs are the learning curve on a machine that can kick back debris hard enough to cause a serious injury, the time it takes if you have not run one before, and the fact that a rented walk-behind grinder is usually smaller and slower than what a tree service brings, so a large hardwood stump can take considerably longer than expected. Eye and ear protection are not optional.
How much does stump grinding cost if I did not have the tree removed by the same company?
The pricing is the same either way, $125 per foot of stump diameter measured at its widest point, whether we cut the tree down or someone else did. The one difference is a possible trip charge for a stand-alone visit, since booking it with a removal means the grinder is already on site.
Is it worth grinding a stump if I am not planting anything there?
Usually yes, for three reasons that have nothing to do with planting. A stump is a mowing hazard and a trip hazard that does not go away on its own. It is a longer-term host for carpenter ants and decay fungi that can spread to nearby trees. And it caps the resale look of a yard in a way that is disproportionate to what it costs to fix. If budget is the only reason to skip it, grinding later is always an option; the stump is not going anywhere.
Stump grinding cost and process →What tree removal costs →All tree care guides →
Removing a tree? Ask us to grind the stump the same day.
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