Bugs Love Tree Stumps: Hire Tree Care Experts to Keep Your Lawn Healthy

If you’ve had a tree removed recently due to its death by storm or disease, now it’s time to turn your attention to the stump. Some people choose to leave these in order to avoid the expense and effort of removal. It can take decades for them to rot away on their—and in cool climates like Edmonton’s, they last longest. Not only are they eyesores, they prevent you from replanting or landscaping your front lawn. Often, one or several new sprouts appear at the edges and grow into viable saplings, though they may be more prone to disease than the original. In addition, it could be damage the yard and cause additional problems by encouraging insect infestations.

Carpenter Ants

The most common insects to inhabit the leftovers of an ash or elm are ants and termites. Edmontonians are lucky; we don’t have termites here, but the carpenter ant can still be ruthless on homes and cause hundreds to thousands of dollars of damage. It won’t take long before they migrate from the yard into the home, especially as they go scavenging for food. A comfortable and well-fed colony of insects will encourage more pests to move in and will increase the population by breeding abundantly. Nearby houses beware: carpenter ants carve out long galleries in damp or rotted wood to set up their nests.

Ticks

Another concern is the increase in ticks—another new pest to the prairies. This parasite loves tree stumps and can easily become a nuisance for every person and pet in the yard. Lyme disease is a serious concern with more cases reported every year. It can be a debilitating illness for both pets and people, so all steps should be taken to keep yards as tick-free as possible. It’s carried by blacklegged ticks, non-native to Alberta but currently under surveillance by healthcare officials. In 2014, 2.6% of the blacklegged ticks reported to Alberta health officials were carriers of the bacteria that causes Lyme disease.

Wasps

Finally, there are wasps, namely yellowjackets. They are burrowing insects that love to make their homes in convenient spots like stumps. A wasp nest can be under construction within days following a tree removal in Edmonton. They are aggressive insects that can become a genuine hazard if not promptly removed, threatening children and dogs who stray too close to their hives. Yellowjackets perceive rapid movements and loud noises as threats to their colony and may attack. Look up tree stump removal services in Edmonton and prevent wasp infestations from starting this spring.

Your yard will look better, it will be easier to mow, and you will then have the option of replanting or creating a garden when you take care of that eyesore out front. The fastest and most effective method of removal is by grinding, a service offered by local arboriculture companies like Chipps Tree Care. The process involves grinding the wood down up to 6 inches below the surface of the earth, or deeper on request. Chemical treatments meant to promote decay are not always effective, and the salt can cause problems with future growth on the spot. It just makes more sense to callarborists like Chipps Tree Care who have the equipment to solve the problem in minutes. Get your yard back this spring and consult with a specialist.